The Forum for Good Governance (FGG) has sought a comprehensive inquiry by the Director General, Vigilance & Enforcement, into the functioning of the Hyderabad Road Development Corporation Limited (HRDCL), alleging lack of transparency in its financial affairs and irregularities in the tendering process of road works.
In a representation to Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Thursday, FGG president M. Padmanabha Reddy said HRDCL had obtained loans close to ₹5,000 crore since its constitution in 2017, and alleged that details of the loans, expenditure and works undertaken by the corporation were not reflected in the State Budget or discussed in the Legislative Assembly.
The Forum pointed out that under the GHMC Act, 1955, roads and streets within the city limits fall under the jurisdiction of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), while the Roads & Buildings Department has a road network of about 600 km within Hyderabad.
Against this backdrop, it questioned the need for another agency, HRDCL, which was floated as a special purpose vehicle through a government order on March 11, 2017, for construction and maintenance of roads in Hyderabad.
The FGG alleged that HRDCL had been taking up works that should be undertaken by the GHMC and said the expenditure incurred by the corporation during the last eight years had not been audited by the Accountant General.
The forum also raised questions over the tendering of works taken up with a ₹1,500-crore loan obtained by HRDCL in 2025.
It said that in the first stage, contractors had quoted prices about 7% below the estimated contract value. In the second stage, tenders were invited for 13 works, with the estimated value of individual works ranging from ₹2 crore to ₹42 crore. According to the representation, several small contractors participated and the quoted prices were 4% to 18% below the estimated values.
The FGG alleged that HRDCL subsequently cancelled the tenders, clubbed the 13 works into larger packages and modified the tender conditions before inviting fresh bids. It said the change appeared to favour certain big contractors.
In Package-I, the estimated value of the works was ₹487.74 crore while the quoted price was ₹511.45 crore, or 4.86% in excess. In Package-II, works estimated at ₹571.42 crore attracted a quote of ₹594.22 crore, 3.99% in excess. The forum said only two contractors participated in the re-tendering and that the bids were approximately 4% above the estimated values.
The FGG said a preliminary examination indicated that this may have caused a loss of about ₹300 crore to the government.
The forum has asked the Chief Minister to order an inquiry into the manner in which HRDCL obtained and utilised loans, its financial and administrative activities, the reasons for cancellation of the earlier tenders, clubbing of the 13 works, changes made to the tender conditions and the reasons for the fresh bids being higher than the estimated contract values. It has also sought assessment of the financial loss, if any, caused to the government and action against those found responsible.
Published – September 18, 2026 08:37 pm IST
