THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: RDS Project Limited, currently handling the Kazhakkoottam elevated highway project, has won the bid to develop a 29-km stretch of National Highway 66 from Kazhakkoottam to Kadampattukonam in Parippally. The contractor was finalised on Monday after the technical and financial evaluation of bids submitted by seven companies through e-tender, said a source with the National Highways Authority of India.
It is likely to award RDS the work after signing an agreement soon. The tenders were opened on January 19, with RDS quoting the lowest amount. The company had earlier run into trouble for the flawed construction of the Palarivattom flyover on NH 66 in Kochi. The other companies in the fray were EKK Infrastructure, Jandu Construction India, KNR Constructions, S and P Infrastructure Developers, Sew Infrastructure, and Sree Dhanya Construction Company.
The Kazhakkoottam-Parippally stretch is slated to be widened to 45m to facilitate six-lane traffic. There will be service roads on either side and proper road safety measures will be put in place, as mandated by the Indian Road Congress. The stretch will be developed under the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) model. A toll booth will be set up like the one on the Kazhakkoottam-Kovalam stretch. Once the road is widened, the travel time from Kollam to Thiruvananthapuram, which normally takes 90 to 105 minutes during peak hours, will be reduced by 20 to 30 minutes.
The NHAI had called the e-tender on October 25, 2021. The last date to submit technical and financial bids was December 9, which was later extended to January 18, 2022. Meanwhile, the NHAI has failed to vacate the stay order secured by the authorities of Thiruvarattukavu Devi temple at Attingal. Acquiring 45 cents belonging to the temple, which is essential for the construction of the 12-km Attingal bypass, is the lone remaining hurdle for the implementation of the project. Though the NHAI filed a review petition in the High Court against the stay order, nothing positive has happened in that regard.
The Kazhakkoottam-Parippally project has been conceived so that the NH deviates from Mamom Junction to a bypass road. From there, long-distance travellers need not touch Attingal town, a major traffic bottleneck. They will rejoin the main road at Ayamkonam near Kallambalam.