BMC had scrapped the tendering process for the much-anticipated desalination project, which aimed to increase the city's water supply by 200 million liters per day (MLD), due to a lack of suitable bidders. Despite multiple deadline extensions since December 2023, the project failed to attract participants, leading civic authorities to investigate the reasons for the lack of interest.
The most recent bid extension ended on August 29. A senior civic official explained that, despite extending the deadline several times, they either received one bid or none at all. Therefore, it was decided to cancel the tendering process, as further extensions no longer seemed viable. However, the official assured that the project remained a priority and would not be rushed, adding that experts would be consulted to determine the reasons for the limited interest.
In February 2021, the BMC had appointed an Israeli company to draft a detailed proposal for the project. SMEC India was later hired in January 2022 to review the study and designs prepared by the Israeli firm. A tender notice was issued on December 4, 2023, for the construction of a plant to convert saline water into potable water.
Previously, Congress had raised allegations of cartelisation in the tender process, accusing the conditions of being manipulated to favour a specific bidder. They had called on the BMC to provide an explanation and urged the cancellation of the entire tender process if the allegations were proven true.
