MMRDA extends bidding timeline for

Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) informed the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that it has decided to extend the timeline for submitting bids for two major infrastructural projects in Thane district. The projects, which include twin tunnels on Ghodbunder Road and an elevated road connecting Bhayander with Thane, are estimated to cost ₹16,577 crore.
Advocate General Birendra Saraf told a bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumbar Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar that the timeline for the bidding process has been extended by 60 days.
This statement came in response to a petition filed by Larsen & Toubro (L&T), challenging the timeline for the bidding process. The construction giant contested the tendering process, citing last-minute significant technical changes to the tender clauses by MMRDA.
L&T approached the high court on Monday morning, claiming that the Notice Inviting Tender (NIT) issued by MMRDA did not contain the geotechnical data for the bridge. The bidders were burdened with collecting this data through an amendment, merely two days before the initial October 3 deadline, which was later extended to October 7.
Senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Zal Andhyarujina, representing L&T, told the court, “It was a case of sudden change in MMRDA’s approach, with the tearing hurry to lessen competition or exclude certain bidders from the process.”
Singhvi added that the concerned bridge would be the second largest after the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL) or Atal Setu, which connects South Mumbai directly with Navi Mumbai. He noted that when the tender process began in July this year, there was no apparent urgency from the tendering authorities.
Senior advocate Janak Dwarkadas, representing L&T in another petition challenging the tender process for the twin tunnels, said that L&T’s bid was submitted under protest. He further stated that it would be difficult to gather geotechnical data in a short span of a few days and sought directions that bids should be accepted without such details.
One of the projects, the 5.7km twin tunnels along Thane-Borivali road, is expected to reduce travel time considerably and alleviate congestion on the busy arterial road. The other project, an 11.425km elevated road creek bridge between Bhayander and Ghodbunder, would connect two critical points and reduce the load on the existing road network in the region.
Work on both projects is expected to commence next year and is likely to be completed by 2028. These infrastructure developments are poised to significantly impact the connectivity and traffic flow in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, addressing longstanding issues of congestion and travel times.