This is not very good news for the people who paying the parking fees to the pay parking contractor who is not paying the same to CCP as per the contract terms. According to CCP sources, the contractor has defaulted in payment of around 24.75 lakhs to CCP out of total contract amount of 63 lakh for the period of one year.
According to the sources in CCP the contract of Straight Deal Services, the agency that collects the parking fees from the people in Panaji will be terminated by the March end and there will be no parking fees in Panaji from 1st April 2017 till the CCP finalise another alternatives. The pay parking system has completely collapsed as it was unable to bring the traffic discipline in the city, said the sources.
The concept of pay parking was lingering around in the city for quite some until the last year when finally it was implemented by the current mayor of the CCP. The contract was allowed to the firm Straight Deal Services last year for the total consideration of Rs. 63.01 lakh. The company was supposed to pay the agreed amount and in turn collect the parking fees towards the parking of two and four wheelers.
But despite of the signing the contract with CCP the firm Straight Deal Services had failed to pay Rs. 24.75 lakh but at the same time continued to collect the fees and hence the CCP has decided to discontinue with the entire pay parking system when the contract for the current contractor expires in April. The civic body is open to the idea of floating a tender to appoint a new contractor or to implement pay-parking in the capital on its own.
According to the sources in CCP The pay-parking system in Panaji failed to bring discipline to traffic while simultaneously denying revenue to the civic body. “We will have to discontinue with the service. It is now for the council to decide whether to tender the work again or to do it ourselves,” mayor Surendra Furtado said.
Meanwhile, with the contractor unscrupulously collecting pay parking fees across the city, CCP is likely to take possession of the bank guarantee given by the contractor and simultaneously file legal recovery proceedings in court, CCP officials said.
