Patna, Nov. 23: National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), in a first-of-its-kind experiment, has decided to adopt a new online system that would give bidders three hours’ time to quote the price to NHAI to win the contract.

Bidders can change their quoted prices till the end of the bidding process and will have access to information about the rates of their competitors.

The authority has decided to conduct online bidding for toll collection work on a 60-km stretch between Piprakothi and Muzaffarpur on the newly built National Highway 28, which is a part of the east-west corridor.

The said road has been made under the engineering procurement construction mode. Under the mode, the Centre provides the fund for constructing national highways. The Centre decides on the toll collection on this stretch, whether it wants to collect it using its own manpower or wants to outsources the task through bidding. Toll collection work for NH-28 will be outsourced to a private agency.

Unlike the previous system of submitting financial bids for such tenders in sealed envelopes, the new system would give three hours to bidders during which they would have to quote the price they are willing to pay to NHAI for winning the right of toll collection on the aforesaid stretch of the road.

“The bidders would be given a password for entering the virtual auction room where they can quote the price,” a NHAI official, requesting anonymity, told The Telegraph.

He said the bidders would have access to information about the amount being quoted by their competitors and they would have the liberty of quoting fresh amount which should be higher than their competitors. “The only condition is that the revised amount should be at least Rs 1 lakh higher than what has been quoted by the previous highest bidder,” added the NHAI official.

In such biddings, the highest bidder is awarded the work.

For the toll collection contract of NH-28, bidders can deposit their security money till November 24 and bidding would be held on November 25.