RAWALPINDI: The Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), on Wednesday decided to recall bids for one of the five portions of the metro bus project after a controversy arose regarding the blacklisting of Habib Rafique Limited (HRL).

However, it has issued work orders for construction work to four firms in Islamabad and work will begin today.

In Islamabad, the work for the project was divided into five sections, between Faizabad and Pakistan Secretariat.

The executing body, RDA, opened the bids on April 10 and finalized five firms, including Habib Rafique Limited construction company, the National Logistics Cell, while two separate joint ventures of Turkish and Chinese companies and one local joint venture Mal-Calsons won the remaining contracts.

However, Pakistan Engineering Council informed RDA after the bidding that the firm was blacklisted for three years by Punjab Emergency Services Rescue 1122. The firm was given a 10-month contract on April 29, 2010, but the firm failed to complete the project even after two and a half years. During this period, on the request of the firm, the project’s steering and observation committee extended the time of completion several times, but in vain.

“It came to our knowledge after the bidding of metro bus project’s Islamabad section, in which HRL presented the lowest bid. The company managed to get the stay orders from Lahore High Court on February 11. And, when the company was short listed for bidding, the stay order of LHC was valid,” said Project Director Zahid Saeed, while talking to Dawn.

“Things changed on the day of the bidding, when the LHC suspended the orders of Punjab Emergency Department to blacklist the company. We were in dilemma what to do,” he said.

He said that after discussing the matter with legal experts, the RDA decided to re-call the bids for this section. He said that the work orders had been issued for the remaining four sections but it was decided to re-call the bids.

“April 30 is fixed for opening of the bids and the work will be awarded to those firms who will give the lowest bid,” the commissioner said.

About the participation of HRL in new bidding process, he said that the company is not blacklisted, as per the decision of Lahore High Court, and the firm is allowed to participate in the bidding process.

“There is no mechanism in the country to check which firm is blacklisted in which part of the country. However, in the contract, there is a clause which allows the executing agency to stop the firm if it provides false information,” he said.