DEOGARH : The Deogarh District Contractors’ Association staged a dharna and locked the Roads and Buildings (R&B) division office in Deogarh on Monday demanding appointment of a regular superintending engineer (SE) and staff reinforcement.
As per the contractors, the division has been operating without a regular SE since January 6. Though Sambalpur’s SE was given additional charge, they claimed the officer has visited Deogarh only 2-3 times in two months.
This has led to significant project delays, administrative backlogs, and financial distress for contractors.
Association president Sujit K Pradhan said, many contractors have completed projects but cannot receive payment without agreements.
Similarly, others have agreements but cannot start work as funds remain in security deposits and material costs. Additionally, they are facing deliberate delays in bill payments, despite fulfilling their contractual obligations, he added.
The association said urgent government intervention is needed to restore administrative efficiency as staff shortage including cashiers, auditors, junior engineers and assistant executive engineers has disrupted operations and approvals for experience certificates, G-Forms, project changes, and time extensions, which are crucial for execution and payment. Without a dedicated SE, projects lack proper supervision and accountability, causing inefficiencies and mismanagement.
On February 28, the association had submitted a memorandum to the collector, setting March 2 deadline for appointing a regular SE, and recruiting essential staff.
The contractors protest received support from Deogarh district Congress president Sem Hembram and BJD MLA Romancha Ranjan Biswal.