Fulfillment of the Indian Roads Congress (I.R.C.) Guidelines is a mandatory requirement of tender conditions, and applying a uniform standard based on the I.R.C. Norms to all applicants is not arbitrary or unreasonable.

ORDER :

1. Leave granted.

2. The sole question in the two appeals under consideration is whether the insistence by the appellant - Indian Oil Corporation Limited on adherence to the Indian Roads Congress (I.R.C.) Guidelines requiring maintenance of specific distance between the proposed retail outlet and the median of the road was correct in view of the fact that in the advertisement and the brochure there was no specific reference to the said guidelines and no specific mention was made that the same would have to be complied with by a tenderer. The respondents - writ petitioners in both the appeals have been held to be disqualified on the ground that they do not satisfy the requirement in question (i.e. distance) under the aforesaid guidelines.

3. To answer the question arising, it will be necessary to note herein the relevant part of the advertisement issued dealing with the above question.

“a) For establishment of Kendra, the compulsory measurement of the plot should be 35 meters x 35 meters (apart from the P.W.D land) the proposed plot of land for KVK should not be on the National highway/State Highway and should fulfill all Rules and sub-rules of P.W.D. and local legal necessities.”

4. The materials on record would go to show that the I.R.C. Guidelines have been adopted by the State P.W.D. of Madhya Pradesh. In view of the aforesaid fact, it is urged on behalf of the appellant that the respondents ought to have verified all such requirements that the rules and sub-rules of P.W.D. stipulate including the requirements spelt out under the I.R.C. Guidelines.

5. On behalf of the respondents - writ petitioners it is urged that there being no specific reference to the guidelines in question the requirement of compliance therewith was not an essential condition of the tender. It is also urged that the rules and sub-rules of P.W.D. referred to in the extract of the advertisement as above would naturally mean statutory rules and the I.R.C. Guidelines do not partake the character of statutory rules.

6. From the proceedings of the selection which shows the manner in which the cases of the respondents - writ petitioners were considered, which proceedings are on the record of the case, it is clear and evident that even at the very initial stage of consideration of the cases of the respondents, it is the requirements spelt out under the I.R.C. Guidelines that were taken into account to hold that the respondents do not fulfill the eligibility criteria prescribed by the tender conditions. The respondent - writ petitioner Arti Devi Dangi was found not to have satisfied the particular eligibility criteria as the land offered by her was situated at a distance of 26 meters away from the intersection on the road whereas in the case of Mohan Singh Parmar the distance was found to be about 600 meters. The I.R.C. Guidelines stipulated that in urban areas where the station is to be located along the State/National Highways the distance should be 1000 meters and in case of rural areas the distance should be 300 meters.

7. Though an argument has been sought to be made on behalf of the respondent - Mohan Singh Parmar that the location of the station for which he had tendered is in an urban area and a certificate in support of the said claim has been relied upon, we do not find the aforesaid stand to be substantiated by the certificate [issued by the Municipal Council, Pankhedi (Kalapipal) District Shajapur] which has been placed on record of the present appeal inasmuch as the same only indicates that the volume of traffic on the road (about 300 vehicles).

8. If the clauses in the advertisement required a tenderer to fulfill all requirements under the rules and sub-rules of P.W.D. and if what was suggested/recommended by the I.R.C. has been adopted by the State P.W.D. and the said norms are in the interest of public safety and would facilitate smooth movement of traffic, it will be difficult to hold that the rules and sub-rules of P.W.D. contemplated in the a