The National Drainage & Irrigation Authority (NDIA) yesterday signed $258M worth of contracts to facilitate improved drainage in various parts of the country.

The contracts were awarded to A&S General Contractors Inc, Harrychand Tulsi and Jainul Hossain Civil Engineering Contracting Services.

A & S General Contractors Inc. has been contracted to construct a drainage sluice at Retrieve, on the right bank of the Mahaicony Creek, in Region Five.   The value of the contract is $117,892, 536 and the construction work is expected to be completed in a year.

The second contract valued at $119, 400,000 was awarded to Harrychand Tulsi for the supply of drainage pumps to be installed at Canal No. 2.  Under this programme, the existing pump will be rehabilitated and a second drainage pump installed. Additionally a mobile pump and a spare capacity pump will be supplied to the NDIA to address the issues of flooding.

The contract awarded to Jainul Hossain Civil Engineering Contracting Services is for the construction of irrigation control structures at Parika, with the intention of improving the supply of irrigation water to farmlands west of the Parika main access road.  The value of the contract is $20, 186, 495 and includes earth works, construction of GH revetment and the construction of the irrigation structure.

Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud, in a brief address, underscored the importance of these projects and said that they will bring improvements in key agricultural areas of the country.

The Minister explained that the contracts took some time to be confirmed because they were awarded based on an elaborate national procurement process. Persaud also said that the Ministry of Agriculture was looking forward to quality projects that would be completed promptly.

He said that if any contractual infringements occur, the Ministry will enforce penalties as stipulated in the contracts.