East Coast Railway is inviting ₹697.18 crore EPC bids to build the Gunupur to Theruvali broad gauge line through nine tunnels in southern Odisha, closing on 5 October 2026.
Nine tunnels in twenty-two kilometres
The package covers two separate reaches of the new Gunupur to Theruvali line. The main one runs from km 122.750 to km 141.940 and carries eight tunnels, T-2 through T-9. A second stretch from km 110.02 to km 113.12 adds tunnel T-1 with its ballastless track works and approaches.
Everything else that makes a railway comes with it: earthwork in embankment and cutting, blanketing, side and catch water drains, minor bridges, a major bridge, road over bridges, road under bridges, protection works, and permanent way track laying with the contractor supplying its own materials. Overhead electrification is inside the scope on the main reach. One structure is carved out, the RCC box and road over bridge number 388 between km 137.725 and 137.925.
Nine tunnels across roughly twenty-two kilometres tells you the terrain. This is the Eastern Ghats, and the alignment is climbing through it rather than around it.
The commercial picture
Earnest money is ₹13,94,35,900 against a ₹697.18 crore estimate. That is two per cent almost exactly, the standard railway figure, and it confirms the value. There is no tender fee at all.
The document set is unusually complete for a tender at this stage: soil reports for the bridge locations, hydrology reports for nine individual bridges, longitudinal sections in five-kilometre sheets, station yard drawings for Bankili and Durgi, general arrangement drawings for the boxes and slabs, and separate drawings for all nine tunnels. Eight corrigenda have been issued and a pre-bid meeting has been held.
Tunnelling changes who can bid. Design and construction responsibility sits with the contractor on EPC terms, and a firm without tunnel experience in hill terrain will struggle at qualification regardless of its earthwork record. The realistic field is national railway contractors and specialist tunnelling joint ventures.
The fleet a hill railway needs
Tunnel work drives its own equipment list: drill jumbos, shotcrete plant, muck haulage and ventilation, with excavators and wheel loaders clearing spoil at every portal around the clock.
Outside the tunnels the demand is conventional but heavy. Formation in cutting and embankment through hill country runs on large excavators, dozers and tippers, with blanketing to railway specification needing motor graders and heavy compactors layer by layer. Bridges, the road over and under bridge structures and the tunnel linings keep concrete mixers and cranes working across the whole programme. Remote hill sites mean plant is stationed rather than shuttled, so hire terms tend to run long. Owners considering that can read our equipment finance guide.
Key facts
Tender ID
IREPS-EPC-CONIIVSKP2026019
Reference no.
EPC-CONIIVSKP2026019
Issuing authority
Chief Engineer, Construction, HQ Engineering, East Coast Railway
Location
Gunupur to Theruvali new broad gauge line, km 110.02 to km 141.940, Odisha
Search by tender ID IREPS-EPC-CONIIVSKP2026019 (reference no. EPC-CONIIVSKP2026019) under East Coast Railway construction organisation.
Register on IREPS and keep a valid Class III digital signature certificate ready.
Download the RFP, the EPC agreement with Schedule G, the tunnel drawings, the soil and hydrology reports and all eight corrigenda, then check tunnelling qualification criteria and arrange the ₹13,94,35,900 earnest money. There is no tender fee.
Design and construction of new broad gauge line over two reaches totalling about 22 km, including nine tunnels, earthwork, blanketing, bridges, road over and under bridges, protection works and track laying.
What is it worth?
₹697.18 crore, with earnest money of ₹13,94,35,900 and no tender fee. The deposit is two per cent of the estimate, the standard railway figure.
Do bidders need tunnelling experience?
In practice yes. With nine tunnels and design responsibility on the contractor under EPC terms, qualification will turn on tunnel experience in hill terrain.
Is anything excluded from the scope?
Yes. The RCC box and road over bridge number 388 between km 137.725 and km 137.925 is carved out, though permanent way and overhead electrification works are included.
Tender details are summarised for convenience and may change. Always verify the latest dates, terms and documents on the official tendering portal before bidding. DesiMachines is not responsible for changes made by the issuing authority.
Bidding with your own machines?Tenders often ask for machine papers such as the RC, insurance and invoice. Keep them in one private place on My Machine and get a reminder before insurance or service falls due. Free.
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