The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has called for the repeal of Telangana’s centralized Project Management Unit (PMU) tender system, which handles supplies for residential schools and welfare hostels. BRS leader T Harish Rao has raised serious allegations, including irregularities in tenders, inflated pricing, bribery, and insufficient deliveries, advocating for a return to procurement through local vendors.
In Hyderabad, the BRS criticized the Congress-led government for awarding an Rs 800-crore contract that they claim has disrupted student supplies. They are demanding a restoration of the previous system where local vendors provided provisions to individual educational institutions via District Purchase Committees (DPCs).
During a discussion with members of the Telangana Gurukul Contractors Association at his home on Tuesday, BRS deputy floor leader T Harish Rao accused the Congress government of granting the contract to NACOFF, a company purportedly blacklisted for violations, despite its Rs 65-crore deposit being forfeited by Telangana Civil Supplies. He pointed out that this company has also faced bans in Odisha and Jharkhand.
Rao further claimed that the tender conditions were designed to disadvantage local vendors by imposing high earnest money deposits. He asserted that the state-level contract was improperly distributed among 12 subcontractors in 33 districts, violating established tender regulations. According to media reports, he alleged that bribes totaling Rs 66 crore had been paid, along with monthly commissions of 20 percent on invoices.
He noted that the rates offered by the contracted company were 35 to 45 percent higher than those from local suppliers, while the actual supplies remained inadequate. Although deliveries were expected to commence in June, hostel administrators have had to rely on previous local suppliers for the last three to four months.
Of the nearly 4,000 hostels, only 280 had reportedly received limited supplies before the Dasara holidays, and the materials delivered allegedly fell below standard, lacking brand information, receipts, and expiry dates.
Harish Rao remarked that a similar centralized procurement system implemented by the same company in Andhra Pradesh was scrapped within three months due to complaints and operational issues. He questioned the rationale behind Telangana adopting a model that failed in the neighboring state.
Additionally, he highlighted irregularities in previous tenders for uniforms, notebooks, trunks, and other student materials, claiming that the BRS had uncovered a Rs 2,000-crore scam. He warned that the party would escalate its protests if the government did not retract the centralized tender system.
