A BOQ in tender is the issued schedule of work items, units and quantities that bidders use to price the work; BOQ stands for Bill of Quantities. To fill it, check the scope against the drawings, build your rates, resolve discrepancies through the tender's clarification process and enter prices only in the permitted fields.
This guide covers Indian public-works bidding: CPWD and state PWD schedules, item-rate and percentage-rate offers, and price-bid files on e-procurement portals. The issued tender documents and corrigenda govern the actual bid.
Tender BOQ: issuer versus bidder responsibilities#
The issuer prepares the schedule of quantities, specifications, drawings, bidding instructions and contract conditions. The bidder checks what those documents require, assesses cost and execution risk, and submits the requested price offer.
An independent quantity check is useful even when the employer supplies the BOQ. It may reveal a drawing revision, an omitted activity or a unit mismatch that changes your costs. Record that finding separately. Do not overwrite the employer's quantities or add rows to a locked price-bid file. Ask for clarification or a revised schedule through the prescribed route.
Treat the BOQ as one part of the tender pack. Read item descriptions with specifications and drawings. If documents disagree, identify the discrepancy and check the stated order of precedence; do not assume the shorter description wins.
Item-rate versus percentage-rate tender#
CPWD's GCC distinguishes CPWD-7 percentage-rate tenders from CPWD-8 item-rate tenders. Check the actual form and amendments issued with your bid; state PWD forms can differ. The CPWD GCC 2023 copy hosted by IIT Kanpur contains both sets of provisions.
| Question | Item-rate tender | Percentage-rate tender |
|---|---|---|
| What is the price input? | An offered rate against each requested item | A percentage above/below, or at par with, the stated schedule basis |
| What needs internal analysis? | Cost and margin for every priced item | Cost of the complete basket before deciding the percentage |
| What must be checked? | Unit, scope, rate, quantity and extended amount | Base schedule, included groups and where the percentage applies |
| What can go wrong? | One omitted or underpriced line consumes the margin | A single percentage conceals expensive items or excluded groups |
Never assume a percentage applies to every row, provisional amount or non-scheduled item. Read the tender's treatment of each group. An at-par offer means no percentage adjustment to the applicable base; it does not prove the work can be delivered at that cost.
Read the issued file and instructions first#
Make a document register before opening the pricing sheet: tender ID, package name, BOQ filename, issue date, drawing revisions, specification references, clarification deadline and submission deadline. Keep the original download unchanged and use a separate internal estimate for working.
Check these commercial inputs before calculating a rate:
- Completion period, access restrictions, work fronts and any required phasing.
- Material specifications, approved makes, testing, disposal locations and responsibility for utilities.
- Payment milestones, measurement basis, retention, advances and security requirements.
- Whether the quoted rates include each stated charge, and how the price schedule handles additions and deductions.
- Rules for quantity changes, extra items, escalation and any limits on qualifying the offer.
These details change the cost of delivering the same measured quantity. A concrete placement with restricted access may need different equipment and productivity from an open site.
How to fill and upload a price bid BOQ on CPPP#
The official CPPP instructions to bidders say to retain the supplied BOQ template, fill the permitted bidder-name/value fields and account for corrigenda. They also distinguish uploading documents from completing submission.
Use this general sequence:
- Download the latest tender pack and check for a revised BOQ.
- Work out prices in your internal estimate.
- Enter the required values in the issued file's editable cells. Preserve its structure, formulas and protected content.
- Follow the supplied validation and saving instructions. Retain filenames and sheet names where required.
- Upload the price file in the designated financial cover, with the other required documents.
- Complete the portal's final submission action and save the acknowledgement.
On CPPP, the published instructions call that final action Freeze Bid. A receipt confirms submission, not the correctness of your price. The official bidder manual kit includes separate BOQ guides.
GeM and state e-procurement BOQ uploads#
Do not assume GeM, CPPP and every state portal use the same workbook, cover arrangement or buttons. For a GeM BOQ bid, use the bid's own price schedule and seller instructions. For a state e-procurement tender, use that portal's instructions and the issued file.
The downloadable workbook below is an internal review aid. It must never replace an employer-issued price-bid template.
Price each item: scope and rate build-up#
Start with the full item description. Record the grade, thickness, finish, height/depth restrictions, unit and included operations. Identify separate payment items so you do not price reinforcement and formwork twice inside a concrete rate.
Then connect each proposed rate to a source:
| Rate basis | What to record | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
| CPWD DSR 2023 or another specified edition | Item code, full description, edition and applicable corrections | Exact scope match and the tender's permitted adjustments |
| State SOR | Department, region, edition and item reference | Local applicability and any specified lead/lift provisions |
| Market build-up | Dated supplier quotes, labour productivity and equipment basis | Delivery location, quote validity and included operations |
| Specialist subcontract quote | Scope, exclusions, quantity basis and validity | Interfaces with the other BOQ items |
CPWD's Delhi Analysis of Rates 2023, Volume I states its material-rate basis is Delhi in April 2023. It is a reference build-up, not evidence of today's delivered price at your site. Learn how to read CPWD DSR items, then use the specified schedule and current quotations appropriately.
For your internal estimate, calculate materials + labour + plant + item-specific costs + overheads and profit, allowing for the actual scope. Check what a scheduled rate already contains before adding allowances. Our rate analysis for construction guide explains the component method.
Worked rate build-up: one cubic metre of RCC#
Illustrative basis, reviewed 20 October 2026: a fictional Delhi NCR building package, RCC placing with reinforcement and formwork priced separately. These are SiteSetu teaching assumptions in ₹ per m³, not DSR rates, market quotations or a recommended bid.
| Component | Assumed cost per m³ |
|---|---|
| Delivered concrete | ₹5,500 |
| Placing and vibration labour | ₹500 |
| Pump/equipment allocation | ₹200 |
| Curing | ₹80 |
| Testing allocation | ₹60 |
| Sundries | ₹60 |
| Direct cost | ₹6,400 |
| Illustrative overheads and profit: 12.5% × ₹6,400 | ₹800 |
| Offered unit rate in this example | ₹7,200/m³ |
The 12.5% is an example assumption, not a prescribed CPWD allowance. Replace every input with your own scope and evidence. Record the pricing basis consistently across the tender; do not add an allowance twice.
Worked tender BOQ: nine priced items#
Location and scope: fictional Delhi NCR small-building civil package. Source: original SiteSetu illustrative quantities and rates. Review date: 20 October 2026. This shortened schedule teaches the arithmetic. It is not a complete specification or a local cost estimate, and its total covers these nine lines only.
| Item | Short scope for this example | Unit | Quantity | Illustrative rate | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Excavation, ordinary soil; disposal within assumed site lead | m³ | 120 | ₹320 | ₹38,400 |
| 2 | PCC bed, assumed specified mix; placing and curing | m³ | 12 | ₹5,800 | ₹69,600 |
| 3 | RCC, assumed specified grade; steel and formwork separate | m³ | 30 | ₹7,200 | ₹2,16,000 |
| 4 | Reinforcement supply, cutting, bending and fixing | kg | 3,600 | ₹82 | ₹2,95,200 |
| 5 | Formwork erection and removal, measured contact area | m² | 240 | ₹650 | ₹1,56,000 |
| 6 | Brick masonry, assumed specified mortar | m³ | 45 | ₹6,400 | ₹2,88,000 |
| 7 | Internal plaster, assumed 12 mm finish | m² | 360 | ₹280 | ₹1,00,800 |
| 8 | Floor tiles, assumed specified tile and bedding | m² | 160 | ₹950 | ₹1,52,000 |
| 9 | Internal painting, assumed preparation and coat system | m² | 500 | ₹180 | ₹90,000 |
| Total of the nine illustrative items | ₹14,06,000 |
Each amount is quantity × rate: 3,600 kg × ₹82/kg = ₹2,95,200. The RCC line links to the companion build-up: 30 m³ × ₹7,200/m³ = ₹2,16,000. Adding all nine amounts gives ₹14.06 lakh.
For a separate percentage-rate arithmetic example, assume the issuer's eligible base total happens to be ₹14,06,000 and the same percentage applies to the entire basket. At 3% above, the addition is ₹42,180 and the result is ₹14,48,180. At 2% below, the deduction is ₹28,120 and the result is ₹13,77,880. These are alternative offers, not successive adjustments. In a real bid, take the base from the issued schedule.
Review missing rates, units and quantities#
Build a comparison register with item number, BOQ quantity, independently checked quantity, difference, drawing reference and action. Use the contract's measurement rules; where it adopts IS 1200, check the applicable part and edition for the work concerned. Do not apply one trade's deduction rule to another.
Use our guide to measure quantities from drawings for the takeoff workflow. Review high-value and uncertain items first, then complete the remaining schedule.
| Check | Practical question | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Drawing coverage | Are all floors, sections, details and revisions included? | List missing drawings and raise queries |
| Quantity | Does each BOQ total reconcile to measurement sheets? | Record the difference without editing the issued quantity |
| Unit | Is the steel in kg or tonnes; concrete in m³ or area? | Reconcile the unit before pricing |
| Scope overlap | Is formwork separate or included in a composite item? | Map each operation to its payment item |
| Missing work | Where are dewatering, disposal, joints or testing covered? | Check inclusions before calling an item omitted |
| Missing rate | Is an editable price cell blank or accidentally zero? | Resolve the entry under the bid instructions |
| Arithmetic | Do extensions, totals and percentage signs reconcile? | Compare the saved price file with the estimate |
Quantity discrepancy example: your drawing check suggests 34 m³ of RCC against an issued 30 m³. The difference is 4 m³, or 13.33% when rounded against the issued quantity. At the illustrative ₹7,200/m³, that represents ₹28,800 of additional work value. Record the drawing reference and ask for clarification. This is exposure for review, not an automatic entitlement or permission to change the bid.
Unbalanced bidding risks#
An apparently competitive total can hide very high rates on some items and very low rates on others. Test what happens if quantities change. If a heavily priced item reduces while an underpriced item increases, expected recovery and margin can disappear.
Front-loading also creates reliance on the planned payment sequence. Review the tender's provisions for rate justification, evaluation and quantity deviations. There is no universal acceptable imbalance percentage in this guide. Keep a defensible cost build-up instead of assuming a low total will settle every evaluation question.
Track clarifications and revisions#
A useful clarification log records the query ID, item/drawing reference, issue, question, date raised, response reference, revised file and pricing action. An unanswered query stays open. A verbal assurance should not silently become the basis of the final offer.
For example: “Q-01, RCC item 3, drawing S-02 revision B: checked quantity 34 m³ versus issued 30 m³. Please confirm the governing quantity and whether a revised BOQ will be issued.” Label this as an illustrative query, not a real project record.
When a corrigendum arrives, compare quantities, descriptions and commercial conditions as well as the total. Reprice affected items, retire the superseded working file and check that the uploaded version is the intended one.
Unlisted, extra and non-tendered items#
An item can be absent from the BOQ yet included within another item's description. An item can also be non-scheduled, meaning outside the chosen DSR/SOR, while still being expressly listed in the tender. Keep those situations separate.
Before bidding, seek clarification on genuinely unlisted scope. After award, follow the contract's instruction, approval, measurement and rate-determination process for extra or substituted work. Do not assume a contractor can add a row and claim payment at any chosen market rate. Keep the instruction and supporting analysis together.
Before signing, reconcile work order scope and BOQ rates with the accepted offer and revisions.
Escalation and the construction programme#
Check whether the issued contract includes price adjustment, which inputs qualify, the base date, indices, duration conditions and exclusions. CPWD GCC includes clauses 10CA and 10CC, but their operation depends on the issued contract and amendments; they are not a blanket promise to reimburse every price increase. Read our price escalation clause guide alongside the tender.
Build procurement timing into your cost assessment. Steel bought early and finishes bought near completion face different exposure. For awarded works, our construction scheduling services help turn the scope into an execution programme.
Download the tender BOQ review checklist#
Download the tender BOQ pricing and checking workbook (Excel). It contains the nine-item illustrative schedule, RCC rate-build-up companion sheet, clarification log and pre-submission checklist. Editable inputs are marked; amounts and percentage examples use formulas.
Use it for internal checking. Submit only the employer's required price-bid file, completed according to its instructions.
Before submission, check that:
- The tender ID, BOQ version and drawing register match.
- Every required rate and percentage entry has been reviewed.
- Item scopes, units, quantities and exclusions have been reconciled.
- Queries and corrigenda have been recorded and priced.
- The saved price file agrees with the approved internal estimate.
- The correct financial cover contains the correct file.
- Final submission is complete and the acknowledgement is retained.
Need an independent quantity check before you commit a price? Get a BOQ from your drawings. Send the issued schedule and drawings so our desk can scope the quantity review. House BOQs start from ₹2,500; tender checks and other scopes are quoted after reviewing the documents.
FAQs#
What is the BOQ full form in tender?#
BOQ means Bill of Quantities. In this context it is the schedule used to obtain the requested price offer against defined work items, units and quantities.
How do I fill a BOQ in tender?#
Read the instructions, check scope and quantities, calculate rates separately and enter only the permitted values in the issued file. Validate, upload and complete submission as required by that tender.
Can I correct a wrong quantity in the issued Excel?#
Raise the discrepancy through the prescribed clarification channel. Do not alter a protected quantity, item description or workbook structure yourself. Use a revised BOQ if the issuer formally supplies one.
Is a tender BOQ the same as the final bill?#
No. The price offer and the later payment calculation serve different purposes. How executed quantities, accepted rates and adjustments determine payment depends on the contract.
Can I use CPWD DSR rates directly for every state PWD tender?#
Only use the schedule basis specified for that tender. Check the edition, location, item scope and permitted adjustments, and assess your own delivery costs before deciding the offer.
Does a blank rate mean the item is excluded?#
Do not assume that. The issued bid conditions determine the treatment of missing or zero entries. Review every required price cell before submission.
Can this Excel pack be uploaded on GeM or CPPP?#
No. It is an internal review workbook. Use the portal's issued price schedule and bid-specific instructions for submission.
References and Further Reading
Primary and supporting sources cited in this article.
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