BHUBANESWAR: Smart City projects in the Capital have come to a grinding halt due to the strike by All Odisha Contractors’ Association which is seeking fulfilment of their demands.
The strike, which has been continuing for the last three weeks, has raised questions on timely completion of projects being executed by Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited (BSCL) through various agencies. The projects are already lagging behind their deadline.
Sources in BSCL said the protest has affected work of six Smart City projects worth over `400.
Contractors have stopped construction of two Multi-level Car Parking (MLCP) projects worth `65 crore at Saheed Nagar and Bapuji Nagar.
Work on the ongoing high-rise project of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) at Unit IX which will house the Intelligent City Operations and Management Centre (ICOMC) of the Capital has also not progressed. Contractors who bagged the Smart Janpath and Integrated Public Service Centre at Bapuji Nagar have also joined the protest hampering the works.
A BSCL official said the project work of sensory park at Saheed Nagar, which is lagging behind its deadline, has not resumed yet.
“The work was supposed to resume from November 15. However, with the association continuing its protest, the contractor concerned is not willing to take forward the project,” a BSCL official said.
Not just smart city projects, work of all ongoing projects has been stopped by the contractors over non-fulfilment of their demands.
The contractors, on Monday, staged a mass demonstration over their 10-point charter of demands and over 10,000 of them have extended their support.
They are demanding the withdrawal of the State Government’s decision to deduct the material cost and royalty money from contractor’s payment if they fail to produce transit pass and royalty receipt of materials purchased for construction work.
They are also demanding abolition of royalty on moorum and stone products such as metal, chips and dust.
Though the Orissa High Court had asked the Government to increase payment of contractors in view of the increasing cost of materials, the Government is yet to execute the order, they claimed.
Association president Prabhat Dash warned that their strike will continue until the government meets their just demands.