IRCON International on Saturday announced it was awarded a Rs. 630.66 crore contract for the construction of 2.5 km twin tunnels of the Aizawl Bypass project in Mizoram by India’s National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDC).
This 2 lane twin tunnel project with a 2.1 km long approach road will built as part of Package-2 of the upcoming 34.5 km Aizawl Bypass project on national highway NH-6. This bypass will connect Sairang & Phaibawk villages and consist of 10 major bridges and 1 minor bridge.
The tunnel section’s construction was approved by the Central Government on January 4, 2024 with a total estimated cost of Rs. 1313.28 crore. Tunneling work will be done through the drilling & blasting method. Tunnel boring machines (TBMs) will not be deployed.
NHIDC had invited bids for Package 2’s construction in October 2023 with a Rs. 893.79 crore construction estimate and 36 month (3 year) deadline. Technical bids were opened in early February to reveal 17 bidders.
Five of those, including Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) surprisingly, were disqualified during evaluation. Financial bids of the qualified 12 bidders were opened on March 9 to reveal IRCON as the lowest bidder.