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Judgment
Kurian Joseph, C.J.—The petition is filed with the following prayers: A. The arbitrary conditions imposed by the respondents relating to the working experience, in tenders No. CE (P) DPK/6/2010-2011, No. CE (P) DPK/7/2010-2011 and No. CE (P) DPK/8/2010-2011 especially those relating to condition No. 2 of the initial filter questionnaire be quashed being arbitrary and against the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Raod Transport and Highways.
B. The respondents may be directed by means of a writ of mandamus to consider the tender of the petitioner without insisting on compliance with the condition imposed vide condition No. 2 of the initial filter questionnaire given in the tender documents.
Similar and related issues were considered by this Court in a common judgment dated 4.7.2011 in CWP No. 1158 of 2010 and CWP No. 1698 of 2010. Operative portion of the said judgment reads as follows: 40. Therefore, in future the Director General, Boarder Roads Organisation is directed to ensure that:-
Before inviting contracts in future, it is ensured that uniform guidelines are fixed for all high altitude areas in the country where the Boarder Roads Organisation is carrying out its work.
These guidelines should be followed by all the project authorities and they cannot lay down their separate guidelines.
Guidelines may be different for high altitude areas, hilly areas, plains and deserts but guidelines for those particular areas should be identical for the entire country.
While framing these guidelines the Director General should ensure that on the one hand weightage is given to people having experience in that particular work but the weightage is not of such an extent that new entrants are barred or competition is limited to a few persons. Adequate weightage must be given for other important criteria already indicated above.
It should also be ensured that a contractor is not given so many contracts that he is overloaded with work.
It should also be ensured that the tender contains a penalty clause whereby penalty can be levied on those contractors who do not complete their work within time or their work is not of the standards laid down in the contract.
Even in this year the Director General Boarder Roads Organisation shall ensure that penalty as per the contract is levied on the contractors who had not completed the work within the time in accordance with law.
Before parting with the petition, it would be pertinent to observe that in case the Director General, Boarder Roads Organisation feels that different yardsticks were laid down for extraneous considerations, he can get an inquiry conducted into the matter and on the basis of such an inquiry he can proceed to take action against the erring officials in accordance with law.
This writ petition is disposed of in terms of the directions as extracted above. The pending application(s), if any shall also stand disposed of.