Now Reading: MoRTH tightens DPR consultant ratings, associates get 75% score
-
01
MoRTH tightens DPR consultant ratings, associates get 75% score
The ministry of road transport and highways has tightened performance-rating norms for DPR consultants, giving associate firms only 75% of the lead consultant's rating instead of an equal score. The change aims…
The Story in Brief
The ministry of road transport and highways has tightened performance-rating norms for DPR consultants, giving associate firms only 75% of the lead consultant's rating instead of an equal score. The change aims to reflect actual responsibility on highway projects, where poor DPRs often cause delays, cost overruns and disputes. Highway awards have fallen to a seven-year low of about 7,000 km in FY26, and construction has also slowed. As of March 2026, around 80 projects were delayed by more than three years, down from 154 a year earlier, but the ministry attributes the remaining delays partly to weak DPRs.
The Indian Opinion
The ministry's move to link ratings with actual responsibility is overdue. But the real test is whether it will curb the poor-quality DPRs that have delayed 80 highway projects beyond three years. Associates may now push for bigger roles, or simply accept lower scores and weaker bids. The risk is that the system becomes a box-ticking exercise if evaluations remain opaque. Watch the next annual data on delayed projects: if the number does not fall sharply, the rating reform alone will not fix the deeper problem of project preparation.
Source: livemint.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
