Over the past five months, there has been a consistent decrease in the issuance of project tenders. As per Projects Today, in December 2022, 5,409 tenders were issued, a number that fell to 4,151 by April 2023. These tenders, some of which were of mega-value exceeding Rs 1,000 crore, were predominantly found across sectors like Water & Sewerage Pipeline & Distribution, Irrigation, and Power Distribution.
The decline in tenders can be attributed to state government agencies, with many key states experiencing funding challenges for large-scale infrastructure projects. Uttar Pradesh, however, proved an outlier, releasing 322 project tenders amounting to approximately 22 percent of the total tender value for April 2023.
Among the sectors, the Roadways dominated by releasing 1,125 tenders worth over Rs 26,566.41 crore in April 2023. Of this, one notable tender came from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), for upgrading the Lucknow-Ayodhya-Gorakhpur Section of NH-28 under the Bharatmala Pariyojana.
A few other noteworthy tenders included one worth Rs 1,219.52 crore issued by Maharashtra’s City & Industrial Development Corporation for road and drainage development, and another from the Public Works Department of Rajasthan worth Rs 1,862.73 crore.
The Railways sector ranked second with 664 tenders valued at Rs 15,237.98 crore. The most significant tender was for the construction of a new rail line in Maharashtra, issued by the Central Railway.
Other sectors such as Water Supply, Community Services, Power Distribution, and Real Estate also released significant numbers of tenders. Within these sectors, prominent tenders were issued by the RITES for IIT Delhi building construction, West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Co. for infrastructure development, and NBCC (India) for the redevelopment of the Hari Nagar colony in Delhi.
In April 2023, 187 tenders were released in the Hospital sector, including one by Engineering Projects India for the construction of a medical college and hospital in Maharashtra.
The Irrigation sector, with 114 tenders amounting to Rs 7,235.8 crore, saw significant tenders issued by the Water Resources Department of Rajasthan and the Irrigation & CAD Department of Andhra Pradesh for irrigation infrastructure and dam improvement projects respectively.
