LUCKNOW, April 25 -- Geopolitical tensions in West Asia have reached the roads of UP, slowing down approximately 70% of ongoing road construction and repair works. A disruption in the global supply chain, triggered by the US-Iran war, has caused the price of bitumen, a crucial binding agent in road construction, to surge by 65% since February. Bitumen, which was priced at Rs.53,150 per metric tonne (including GST) in February, has skyrocketed to around Rs.89,859 per metric tonne. Construction agencies are being forced to abandon the asphalt-laying phase after completing base preparations due to unsustainable escalation in costs. "We are taking steps on this issue. The circular from government of India is already there and clear on the situation," said principal secretary (PWD) Ajay Chauhan. The matter was raised by the Diploma Engineers' Sangh (DES) with the CM's office. "A surge in prices of bulk bitumen VG-10 is a significant issue for road construction as contractors may be inclined to use less bitumen or poor quality bitumen in road construction due to price rise," said DES president ND Dwivedi. Disruptions to the global supply chain, triggered by US-Iran tensions, have led to severe shortages and price hikes in petroleum products, impacting ongoing road construction projects across the state. "The miinistry of road transport and highways has worked upon solutions to meet this crisis that may extend for the next few months...similar solutions can be worked upon in UP," stated Dwivedi in his letter to the CM office. To address this issue, the Public Works Department (PWD) has decided to compensate for the increased cost (the price differential) of asphalt. A Cabinet proposal has been drafted for this purpose. The department has proposed providing compensation for the increased costs incurred on works executed between April 1 and June 30, which has been done by the MORTH as well. The MORTH has issued a circular for adjusting the price rise for engineering procurement and construction (EPC) and hybrid annuity model (HAM) projects having provisions of price escalation. "It is proposed to pay, as a measure of relief, price adjustment for abnormal increase in the prices of bitumen in respect of short-term maintenance contracts (STMC), item rate and EPC contracts of less than 18 months duration, where no price adjustment mechanism has been provided. For the surge in bitumen prices, price adjustment is proposed for the period April 1 to June 30, for contracts having bid due date before April 2026," stated the MORTH circular. The UP Thekedar Kalyan Samiti (UPTKS) has demanded that the PWD restarts its own stores and provide bitumen to contractors having work tender till the crisis exists. "This will ensure there is no delay in completing the work," said Sharad Singh, president of UPTKS, in a letter to the PWD HoD. "There are provisions under EPC projects for relaxation to meet price rise. Government of India has issued a circular and we are working on the situation to take care of prices," said Chauhan....