The Ministry of Finance on Thursday extended the deadline by two months till December 31, 2023 for submitting claims to settle pending disputes relating to government contracts.

The Vivad se Vishwas II scheme was launched on July 15 to settle disputes in government contracts and the last date for submitting claims by contractors was October 31.

The scheme is applicable to all domestic contractual disputes where one of the parties is either the government of India or government undertakings.

The Department of Expenditure said “It has been decided that the claims under the Vivad se Vishwas II scheme can now be submitted till December 31, 2023.”

Under the scheme, for court awards passed on or before April 30, 2023 the settlement amount offered to the contractor will be up to 85 per cent of the net amount awarded/upheld by the court.

For arbitral awards passed on or before January 31, 2023, the settlement amount offered is up to 65 per cent of the net amount awarded.

The Government e-Marketplace (GeM) has created a specialized webpage for the execution of this initiative. Only eligible claims will be handled via GeM. Contractors dealing with non-GeM contracts from the Ministry of Railways must register their claims on the railway’s e-procurement system portal, IREPS.

Source: Economic Times