New Delhi, May 14 -- The tightening of bidding norms by the ministry of road transport & highways (MoRTH) via the additional performance security (APS) requirement will ease competitive pressure in central government road projects, rating agency ICRA said in a report on Wednesday.

The APS requirement necessitates that bidders who quote significantly below the estimated project cost provide an extra security deposit. It aims to discourage aggressive and potentially unviable bids, thereby reducing intense competition for central government road projects.

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The previous relaxed bidding norms had intensified competition for such projects, with most being ...