ISLAMABAD, Oct 21: The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has failed to auction G-9 bus stand despite a lapse of three months since the expiry of the earlier contract, informed sources said.

They said the authority had cancelled two auctions of the bus stand, one due to the pressure of transporters and the other due to low bidding. These two auctions were held on July 26 and October 15 respectively.

In the first auction, the stand was given to a contractor who made the highest bid of Rs30.35 million. This auction was termed successful by the CDA as earlier in 2000, the stand had been given on contract at a cost of Rs15.5 million.

As the auction’s amount was 100 per cent more than the last auction, the authority increased the schedule rates of parking wagons, coaches and buses in the stand. Though the new contractor had no objection on the increase in the contract amount, some transporters rejected the new rates charged by the contractor and met the CDA chairman several times to get them reduced.

The sources said the issue of reducing rates for parking vehicles in the stand was between the transporters and the contractor, therefore the CDA had no need to become a party and cancel the contract on July 30.

On the cancellation of the contract, the authority assured the transporters of another auction, they added.

However, in the second auction on October 15, the highest bid made was Rs13 million because this time the contractor and the transporters resolved a dispute among themselves and offered low bids. This bid was even lower than the amount on which the stand had been auctioned two years ago.

The sources said bidding in the second auction should have been started from Rs15.5 million on which the stand had already been given, but it commenced from Rs10 million and closed at Rs13 million. The CDA, therefore, cancelled the auction and decided to hold another within 15 days.

The authority has taken over the charge of the stand and is now running it through the low grade staff of the directorates of municipal administration and enforcement.

The sources said the stand was likely to be auctioned below Rs20 million which would be Rs10 million less than the highest bid of Rs30.35 million made in the auction held on July 26.

Some of the transporters complained that the senior officials of the authority were minting money after taking over the charge of the stand because they were charging their own rates from transporters for parking their vehicles in the stand.