Vadodara: BCA agrees to raise cricket stadium construction budget

VADODARA: The construction of international cricket stadium is set to go up.
The Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) on Friday told the contractors that the association is ready to give them a raise of 7.84% in the total cost. The apex council members made the unanimous decision after the contractors demanded a raise in the price they had earlier quoted.
“The association has agreed to increase the cost by 7.84% as per the project management contract.The contractors have said that they will communicate soon about their decision. But they have said that the construction work won’t stop,” said Sheetal Mehta, BCA vice-president.
BCA officials said the contractors mainly cited rise in labour wages and prices of raw material as the reason behind asking for a hike.
Earlier this month, one of the contractors had asked for a hike of 20% and another of 16%. The contractors had claimed that they had a tough time hiring the labourers who had gone back to their villages during the pandemic over the last two years. The labourers demanded more money. Also, the increasing price of fuel has also affected their budget.
One of the contractors had even put the BCA on the notice and asked the association to decide on the price hike within five days. The construction cost of the stadium at Kotambi was initially pegged at Rs 80 crore but it may now cross Rs 100 crores.