Search continues for contractors to complete Aa Sahara renovation

Malé City Council has once again made an announcement seeking contractors to complete finishing work at 'Aa Sahara' cemetery renovation site.

The City Council had made the announcement earlier and gotten no responses. The new announcement was made on 3 April.

Speaking to "Mihaaru" news, Spokesperson for Malé City Council Aminath Shathfa stated that the announcement was made once more as they had failed to find a contractor for the task earlier.

While renovation of the cemetery's main structure has been completed, Malé City Council had aimed to have finishing work concluded before the start of Ramazan so the cemetery could be reopened.

Following this failure, the council has made the announcement once more to seek additional bids for the work. An information session will be held regarding the details of the bid on 18 April, and the official bidding is set to commence on 24 April within the same week.

Malé City Council stated they will not be accepting bids from those who do not attend the information session, and that bids that are submitted after the close of the deadline would also not be considered.

Only domestic companies, partnerships and local investment and business permit holders will be able to place their bids under this announcement.

Renovations at 'Aa Sahara' cemetery began in last June, with Malé City Council aiming to construct a two-storey building at the site to resolve the lack of space and accommodate more visitors at the cemetery. The contract was awarded to PNP Maldives at a cost of MVR 4.9 million.

However, the city council canceled the contract following long delays in completion of the work. At that point, the company had already been paid MVR 3.6 million.

The contract was later awarded to the company B-Six Investment in December for a fee of MVR 4.6 million.

Under the renovation project, the old building at 'Aa Sahara' cemetery has been demolished to increase space within the mosque. Work is also now underway to construct a lounge and a separate space dedicated to the preparation of bodies for burial.

Due to the ongoing renovations at 'Aa Sahara' cemetery, funeral rites and burials for deaths in Male' are also performed at the cemetery in Hulhumalé at present.