The meeting in progress at the RMC office. Picture by Hardeep Singh

Ranchi, Jan. 18: “You people are not making a very good impression so far,” RMC administrator Vinay Kumar Choubey blurted out today as he went through presentations of top national and international consultants, who had offered technical bids for preparing a masterplan for the big cities of the state.

About 10 multinational consultants, including Webcoss, Hudco, Berchill Partners, Meinhardt, DHV India Private Limited, stammered and stuttered at some basic questions, while one of them looked to put an end to the embarrassment by saying the idea of a masterplan was an “obsolete” one.

But the observers were quick to get back. “But you yourself are a planner,” pat came the reply.

More examples of such goof-ups were on the platter when the consultants were asked to name the municipalities in Jamshedpur.

“Yes, we know,” one of them answered, “Jamshedpur Municipal Corporation…err…Jusco.”

Over 30 executives of the firms had queued up at the RMC office to present their “credentials and experience” vis-à-vis the preparation of the master plan.

The meeting, chaired by Choubey, was also attended by deputy development commissioner of the districts concerned, RRDA chief engineer and head of department of architecture of BIT-Mesra, Ajay Khare.

Ranchi’s masterplan was earlier worked out by Ranchi Regional Development Authority (RRDA) in the early 80s. The plan expired a few years back prompting the urban development department to prepare a fresh one.