Subcontractors from Goa have been caught in a crossfire between the main infrastructure contractors of GMR as nearly a year after the Manohar International Airport was inaugurated, many pending bills for works undertaken are still to be cleared.
“I am still to be paid Rs 22 lakh by Megawide for the cranes used by them. I have reached a stage where I have to plead for my money with no solution in sight,” says Arun Sonavane, owner of Tirupati Crane.
“We are being made to wait for months with the ball being thrown from one department to the other. Bills are being slashed and if new terms are not accepted, finality appears to be a distant dream,” narrates Sonavane.
“Megawide is continuously delaying final bill settlement. Despite constant reminders, we are certain they will make payments within the next ten days and then hope to pay our contractors from Goa,” promised Prasad, general manager of Vijay Nirman Company (VNC) one of the companies that have been outsourced work by Megawide.
“We never expected such delays from Megawide because we have been associated with the company for long and never experienced such delays after work having been completed,” added Prasad.
Prasad’s promise, however, is negated by the assertion of Prabhat Satapathy, Project Director of Megawide, who stated: “VNC has to pay us back Rs 3.5 crore because we overpaid them. So, the question of we having to pay them the money does not arise. It’s a question of when they are going to pay us.”
Megawide is the main infrastructure contractor of GMR, who, on their part outsourced work to VNC and Jaideep Construction (JDC) and payments of all subcontractors are pending with these three companies.
“I fully agree, accept and recognize that an amount of INR 6,651,030.00 is the only amount of money which is due and payable to us from Megawide Construction DMCC…” is a notarised document of a subcontractor from Goa.
“It is wrong to assume that GMR owes any contractor money because the entire project was awarded to Megawide and therefore all our dealings were directly with them,” stated Vikram Tanwer, head of corporate communications GMR and added, “However, I will crosscheck with Megawide to ascertain the veracity of the accusations made by contractors. I do not believe that there are problems. Nevertheless, I will inquire.”
JDC and VNC, the two companies to whom work had been outsourced by Megawide, keep assuring the subcontractors from Goa that their payments will be cleared once money is released by Megawide.
“Even JDC owes us Rs 1.5 crore. So where is the question of paying them? We are being dragged into a controversy where there is none as far as we are concerned,” argues Satpathy.
JDC and VNC, the two companies to whom work had been outsourced by Megawide, keep assuring the subcontractors from Goa that their payments will be cleared once money is released by Megawide.
Megawide, according to a local contractor, is forcing them to submit an affidavit with the following clause inserted: “We shall not be entitled to receive any other amount of money from Megawide and we would not claim, dispute, call in question or otherwise have any demand subsisting against Megawide for any reason whatsoever.”
“If we are not owed money by Megawide, why are we forced to give such undertakings?” asks one of the signatories. “….and we consciously waive off any and all of our other claims against Megawide,” concludes the declaration got from most subcontractors to whom money is due.
Contractors, who allege that payments are due for months, claim that the company calls them for closure meetings wherein huge deductions are made and they are asked to accept the same or wait indefinitely till a resolution is found.
“The wait is indefinite and many, out of desperation, accept whatever is given because at the end, we have to pay our labourers too,” concludes an aggrieved subcontractor from Goa.
