Former HC judge to review all major infrastructure projects over Rs 100 cr in Andhra

The appointment has been made in accordance with the State Infrastructure (Transparency through Judicial Preview) Act, 2019.
Former HC judge to review all major infrastructure projects over Rs 100 cr in Andhra
Former HC judge to review all major infrastructure projects over Rs 100 cr in Andhra
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Former Telangana High Court judge, Justice B Siva Sankara Rao will head the Judiciary Preview Committee which will preview all infrastructure projects valued Rs 100 crore and above in Andhra Pradesh before the state government invites tenders.

The state government on Wednesday appointed Justice Rao on the recommendation of the Chief Justice of the High Court. According to a government order, Justice Rao's term will be for three years from the date of assuming office.

The appointment has been made in accordance with the State Infrastructure (Transparency through Judicial Preview) Act, 2019.

Under the Act passed in July, all contracts worth Rs 100 crore or above will be brought under judicial preview to ensure transparency in big-ticket deals.

The committee will review all projects including Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects to ensure conformity in procedure rules and guidelines.

The government will place all documents related to the project before the panel. The committee will put the tender related documents in public domain for a week and invite suggestions.

After preview and discussions, the judge may suggest modifications which will be binding on the government.

Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had said during the debate on the Bill in Assembly that the move will erase the image of corruption the state had acquired by the misdeeds of the previous government.

The Bill had identified 25 sectors, including PPPs, that could be considered by the judicial preview.

Finance Minister Bugganna Rajendranath said that such that the Bill was a ‘necessity’ as the previous government had "institutionalized corruption", particularly in the capital region of Amaravati by adopting arbitrary methods in bidding process, he alleged.

IANS inputs

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