Patna, Sept. 14: A2Z Infrastructure Private Limited, which provides sanitation services in select parts of the state capital, has moved the high court seeking directions to Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) and authorities concerned to make payment of Rs 7.62 crore in dues to the company.

The petitioner, which has also undertaken the work of solid waste management in various cities of Indore, Lucknow, Kanpur, Ranchi and Darbhanga, has prayed to the court that it be paid its dues of Rs 7.62 crore along with 18 per cent interest.

The petition filed through advocate Anurag Saurav submitted that it has been 19 months since PMC has not paid a single penny to the company.

A2Z, which started removing municipal solid waste since January 2010 after signing an agreement with PMC, has suspended sanitation services in nine out of 72 wards in the town.

It has stopped removing solid wastes from its area of operations since July 2011 after it did not receive payment in spite of writing to the authorities concerned.

Saurav submitted that PMC has not been making payments to the company in spite of A2Z fulfilling all criteria according to agreement signed between PMC and the company.

As per the provision of Clause 14.4 of the contract agreement, 75 per cent of monthly bills raised would be paid within 10 working days and remaining 25 per cent would be paid on the bill verification on the basis of log reports prepared at the weighbridge and the same will be paid within a period of 20 days after payment of 75 per cent claim, Saurav contended.

The counsel further said A2Z has been submitting the bills on a monthly basis along with requisite documents as mentioned in Clause 14.3 of the agreement.

The company needs to submit on or before the 7th day of every month bills in triplicate to the PMC commissioner.

The company is required to furnish details such as statement of daily transported municipal solid wastes, a data-wise monthly report of lifting of garbage in and around the containers authorised by PMC representatives, monthly report of removal/shifting of containers from the service area, monthly performance evaluation report, etc, along with the monthly bill, the petition said.

In spite of submission of monthly reports as well as other reports to the PMC, A2Z has not been paid for more than 18 months, whereas the payment was to be made on a monthly basis and 75 per cent of the claim amount was required to be made even without verification of the bills, the counsel submitted.

PMC had constituted a committee to look into the inflated bills of A2Z.

The committee reached the conclusion that the corporation owes total payment of Rs 88 lakh to the company against the latter’s claim of Rs 7.62 crore.

At present, the vigilance department is probing the entire case.