Lukewarm response to Parwanoo barrier auction

Solan, February 27

The Parwanoo inter-state barrier fetched a low bid of Rs 19.6 crore, which was not only lower than last year’s auctioned amount, but also lesser than the reserve price in the second auction held at Solan today.

The highest bid of Rs 19.6 crore was received as against the reserve price of Rs 22 crore. The barrier had been auctioned for Rs 20 crore last year and a hike of 29.78 per cent on the reserve price had been received by the State Taxes and Excise Department. There are two inter-state barriers under the Parwanoo unit.

The auction was held under the chairmanship of Additional Deputy Commissioner Ajay Yadav where State Taxes and Excise Deputy Commissioner Devkant Prakash Khachi was also present.

Yadav said three bidders came forward today. Though there has been some improvement in the price of bid amount today vis-à-vis the first auction, it was still less than the reserve price.

Parwanoo is considered a lucrative inter-state barrier unit in the district as it is the gateway to the state leading to the tourist destinations of Shimla, Kasauli, Chail, Barog, Kinnaur, etc. It seems the department will incur losses in the auction if it gives its consent to this bid, though it could call the bids again and re-negotiate for a higher amount. It remains to be seen whether there would be another round of bids.

Since the Chakki Mor located on the Parwanoo-Dharampur section of the National Highway 5 had remained closed for several days after its sizable portion had eroded in the torrential rains last monsoon, the bidders were being cautious while bidding for these barriers, remarked Ajay Yadav.