Tender bidders meeting turns violent

435 applications received for 14 sand blocks in Kodagu district

The district-level meeting of the tender bidders called by the district administration witnessed tensed situation for some time, when the tender bidders who had come to submit applications, retaliated against the officers.

Tender bidders raised objection at the meeting chaired by Assistant Commissioner Abhiram G Shankar at Fort hall on Friday. Hundreds of bidders had assembled at the meeting called for 14 sand blocks in the district.

As many 435 applications were received and were placed in a box. When the box was opened in the presence of the bidders and officers, bidders took an exception for the PWD chief engineer retaining 27 applications with them.

Verbal tiff at this point led to chaos in the meeting. Bidders complained that though they had paid Rs 435 for submitting an application, the administration has not provided even minimum facility like drinking water. Of the total sand blocks, two blocks were reserved for scheduled caste and one block for scheduled tribe. Bidders alleged the officers of receiving applications from other community people for the reserved blocks. This again led to a serious verbal fight between the bidders and officers. Police intervened to control the situation.

Though Additional Deputy Commissioner H Prasanna arrived at the meeting to settle the issue, bidders did not budge. Deputy Commissioner Anurag Tiwari arrived at the hall and continued the meeting.

He placed all the applications in two boxes and said that he would examine all the applications. Opportunity will be provided to resubmit applications in case of any loopholes in the process, he said, for which the bidders agreed.