Modi govt opens up highway for mid-sized firms; new move may bring more bids for road infra projects

The recent relaxations by the Narendra Modi-government will likely enable mid-sized firms to participate in the bidding process to construct highways, along with other construction contracts. These measures may intensify competition in roads, bridges and highways, and tunneling projects by way of higher participation from a wider set of bidders, said a report by India Ratings and Research. The relaxations would also provide the much-needed relief to those construction contractors whose eligibility to bid for new projects has been hampered on account of the coronavirus pandemic-led business disruptions, the report added.