Bhubaneswar, Sept. 30: The process to set up the central water and wastewater testing laboratory here faces a problem with the housing and urban development department initiating an inquiry into alleged irregularities in the tender process.

The department initiated the inquiry the after social worker Sudhakar Sahoo had filed a grievance petition before chief minister Naveen Patnaik, alleging mass irregularities by the public health engineering organisation (Pheo) in the tendering process.

Pheo had, in December last, inked a pact with a Delhi-based firm to set up the central water and wastewater lab in Bhubaneswar in the public-private-partnership mode to check and maintain the quality of water in the city.

However, the social worker raised the issue and asked the state government on how private firms could be entrusted with the job to monitor the water quality. He further alleged that tender work was illegal as it was finalised in a single-tender manner.

'The agreement between Pheo and the Delhi-based firm is not legal as water supply may come under the scope of public-private-partnership mode, but an important work such as quality monitoring do not come under the same,' stated Sahoo, adding that the firm did not even fulfil the criteria.

The project aims to ensure quality monitoring of water and provision of safe drinking water. The request for project proposal had been invited in May last year, and the firm was selected in December. According to the pact, the lab will be set up by December this year.

The project was decided to be executed in two phases. In the first one, the firm was to set up an advance laboratory enabled with high-end equipment in Bhubaneswar and eight divisional laboratories in Berhampur, Cuttack, Puri, Bhubaneswar, Balasore, Baripada, Rourkela and Sambalpur.

'We did received the grievance from the chief minister's office and forwarded the same to the concerned office. The officials have been given a fortnight's time to inquire and furnish a report. For the time being, the work on the project is stopped,' said a senior official.

Pheo superintending engineer C.R. Jena said they would inquire into the allegations and submit the report to the government on time. 'The government had already formed a six-member committee to look after the firm's works. We are taking enough measures to ensure smooth and safe completion of the project,' said Jena, adding that they would look after the modalities based on which the allegations were raised and submit the report to the government for further action.