‘Hiring of vehicles by ZPHQ classical example of favouritism’

Transporters addressing a joint press conference in Jammu on Thursday. —Excelsior/Rakesh
Transporters addressing a joint press conference in Jammu on Thursday. —Excelsior/Rakesh

Excelsior Correspondent

JAMMU, Mar 3: The transport community in Jammu has alleged that hiring of vehicles through tenders by Zonal Police Headquarters, Jammu has turned out to be a classical example of favouritism/bias towards the selected contractors for the last three years and the LG’s office must intervene urgently into the matter and break the nexus.
Addressing a joint press conference here today, the transporters from Jammu said that whole transport community of Jammu region has expressed resentment over gross nepotism, financial irregularity and injustice being done with the local transporters by the office of ZPHQ, Jammu by inviting tenders for hiring of vehicles.
While explaining further, they pointed out that the procedure adopted for selecting the `Single’ contractor for supplying of vehicles of different categories is itself a mockery of the system of tender. They said these vehicles are mainly utilised in connection with Lok Sabha/Assembly/ Local Body elections. From the last three years, that is from 2019-20, 2020-21 and 2021-22, each year certain special conditions were imposed in the tender, such as minimum annual turnover of the bidder has been raised from Rs 20 lakhs in 2019-20 to Rs 35 lakhs in 2020-21 and then next year to Rs 1.5 crore. This year also same Rs 1.5 crore has been fixed just to manipulate and provide benefit to the favourites.
Further, they have also manipulated the vehicles ownership criteria. In 2019-20, vehicles required were 30 (owned/ rent/lease) but in 2021 conditions were again manipulated and customized in a way that 25 vehicles should be owned (either all HMV or LMV or MMV), but this year in 2022, vehicles should be 30 Nos owner (out of which 20 Nos should be commercial passenger vehicles mandatory).
It is very ironical that department has again tailored conditions to suit those vested interests that are a few in number in Jammu. Also, 90 % of the vehicles are either procured on rent-lease basis from local transporters and also from neighbouring Punjab by them. Now, a new condition of three years’ mandatory experience of working with Police Department has been inserted which itself is a mockery of the system and to debar other local transporters to participate in the tender process. This clearly shows a nexus of some officers with a few transporters which needed to be exposed and broken.
They sought the intervention of Lt Governor, Manoj Sinha into the matter and demanded that conditions should be relaxed to ensure maximum participation of the transporters.