ISLAMABAD: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has relaxed the eligibility criteria for awarding the contract for the construction of Shaheen Chowk, making it easier for more companies to take part in the bidding process.
The project, worth Rs1.3 billion, had earlier attracted only one bidder due to CDA’s strict rules. However, the lone bid was rejected after the technical evaluation on Friday.
In response, the CDA revised the experience requirement. Now, any firm that has completed work worth Rs1.5 billion within 180 days in the last five years will be eligible to receive experience marks. The previous condition required companies to complete such work in just 100 days.
“We have changed the criteria to encourage healthy competition. We hope more companies will now participate,” said a CDA official.
The civic body had faced criticism for setting rules that seemed to favour only a few firms. The revised tender has already been issued, and bids will be reopened on July 28.
According to procedure, the CDA first opens technical bids. After reviewing them, it proceeds to open the financial bids before awarding the contract.
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Interestingly, the only firm that applied had moved its machinery to the site on Friday for initial bore work, expecting to secure the contract unopposed. But the CDA rejected the bid and decided to re-tender the project.
The project includes building an underpass at the intersection of Khayaban-i-Iqbal and 9th Avenue, with a completion timeline of 180 days, as per official documents.
This is not the first time the CDA has used strict criteria. Similar rules were applied to the Serena Interchange, later renamed Jinnah Square Interchange, and the F-8 Interchange, as part of its push to complete major projects quickly. However, both faced problems—the F-8 Interchange’s design was questioned, while the Jinnah Square project ran into drainage issues.
When contacted, a senior CDA officer confirmed the changes in the experience requirement, saying firms that completed Rs1.5 billion worth of work within six months would now qualify for experience marks.
