Schedule of Rates (SOR) in tenders: CPWD DSR, DAR, cost index and state SORs

A schedule of rates, or SOR, sits behind almost every public works tender in India. It decides the estimated cost the department puts to tender, and in percentage rate tenders your whole bid is a single number above or below it. This guide explains what an SOR is, how CPWD's DSR and DAR work, how estimates use them, and how to read "above SOR" and "below SOR" when you quote.

What is a schedule of rates (SOR)?

A schedule of rates is a list of standard items of work, each with:

• an item number, such as 2.1.1
• a description (engineers call it the nomenclature), written to match a published specification
• a unit, such as sqm, cum or each
• a rate in rupees for that unit

For example, item 2.1.1 of CPWD's DSR 2023 is earth work in surface excavation up to 30 cm deep, in all kinds of soil, at ₹129.85 per sqm.

The CPWD Works Manual 2026 says the SOR for Delhi is issued by the Director General of CPWD, and the Special DGs may issue SORs for their regions. SORs are "ordinarily revised once in two years", along with the specifications, market rate lists and rate analyses behind them (para 3.1.1.9).

State PWDs, water boards and other works departments publish their own SORs. The tender notice (NIT) tells you which one the estimate uses.

CPWD DSR: the latest editions

CPWD publishes its rate books under Documents, then CPWD Publications on cpwd.gov.in. On 8 October 2026 the newest editions there were:

Key facts about DSR 2023, from its preface and title page:

• It applies from 16 October 2023 and includes corrections up to 10 November 2023.
• It is based on Delhi market rates of April 2023 and the minimum wages in force from 1 April 2023.
• GST at 18% on works contracts is built into every item. The foreword says one reason for the revision was the rise in GST on works from 12% to 18% from 18 July 2022.
• Its cost index is 107, measured against CPWD's Plinth Area Rates 2021 (base 100 on 1 April 2021).
• It is read with the CPWD Specifications 2019, Vol I and II, and their correction slips.

DSR (E&M) 2025 has a cost index base of 100 on 1 April 2025. It replaced DSR (E&M) 2022 and the separate 2019 schedules for solar power plants and facade lighting, and added chapters such as CCTV, LAN, fountains and lifts.

What is DAR (Delhi Analysis of Rates)?

The DAR is the working behind each DSR rate. CPWD's foreword calls it the "backbone in preparation of DSR". For each item it lists the labour, materials and machinery needed per unit, and then adds the standard percentages.

Here is how DAR 2023 builds the ₹129.85 rate for earth work item 2.1.1, per 100 sqm:

Two things matter to a bidder:

• The basic material rates in the DAR are without GST, at Delhi prices of April 2023. GST is added in the analysis.
• The DAR's quantities are a ready costing tool. Put your own local labour and material prices against the DAR's quantities and you can see whether the SOR rate covers your cost. CPWD does the same: its SOPs say market rate analysis of extra items is based, as far as possible, on DAR coefficients.

How estimates and BOQs use the SOR

The CPWD Works Manual 2026 and its Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) describe the steps.

1. Preliminary estimate. Early approval uses the Plinth Area Rates: a cost per sqm of building, without item-by-item detail.
2. Detailed estimate. Items covered by the SOR are priced at SOR rates. The rest are priced at analysed market rates (SOP 3/3).
3. Non-schedule items. For any item not in the SOR, the engineer prepares the description, rate analysis and specification and approves it before it goes into the NIT (SOP 3/3).
4. Cost index. The effect of the prevailing cost index over the SOR's own reference index is applied to the SOR-based items (SOP 3/5). DSR 2023 says non-schedule items are priced at market rates without adding the cost index.
5. Estimated cost put to tender (ECPT). The total goes into the NIT and the schedule of quantities you price, which on e-tender portals is the BOQ file. See how to fill the BOQ in e-tenders.

If the NIT's specification differs from the DSR's, the rate must be changed. Under para 4.10(4) of the Works Manual, if that moves the ECPT by more than 2%, or one item by more than 10%, after the NIT is out, the NIT is revised and tenders are invited again.

What is a cost index?

The Works Manual defines it as "an indicator of the average cost movement over time of a fixed basket of representative goods and services related to execution of works". In practice it does two jobs:

• It updates old rates. Prices rise between SOR editions, so the estimate adds the change in the index.
• It adjusts for place. Building costs differ across the country, so each location has its own index.

CPWD's Chief Engineer (CSQ) Civil issues the index for Delhi, and the regional ADGs and SDGs issue it for other places, as on 1 April and 1 October every year (para 3.1.1.9).

The index is worked out from a basket of materials such as bricks, cement, steel, aggregates, sand and tiles, using bare rates without GST (PAR 2025, Annexure VI). Indian Railways tells its zones to use DSR 2023 with the building cost index of the matching CPWD zone, or to work one out (Railway Board letter of 3 July 2025).

As a rough illustration: if the index for your site is 112 on the same base as the DSR's 107, the SOR items in the estimate rise by about 4.7%. Ask the department or read the estimate for the actual figure.

Above or below SOR: quoting in percentage rate tenders

The Works Manual describes two main ways of quoting:

People say "below SOR" because the ECPT in a percentage tender is mostly SOR rates. On an ECPT of ₹40 lakh:

• 7.5% below is a bid of ₹37 lakh.
• 4% above is a bid of ₹41.6 lakh.

The same percentage then applies to the rates you are paid on. Because DSR rates already include GST and 15% profit and overheads, your percentage has to cover those too.

How CPWD checks your percentage

• Justification. Before the financial bids are opened, the engineer prepares a justified cost from market rates of materials and labour at the site on the last day for receiving tenders (Works Manual para 5.1.6). The items analysed cover at least 90% of the ECPT (SOP 5/3).
• Too high. A rate up to 5% over the justified rate is ignored. Up to 10% may be allowed in special circumstances, with reasons recorded. Tenders above that are not accepted (SOP 4/1).
• Too low. A bid below 80% of the ECPT is treated as abnormally low. You must give an additional performance guarantee equal to 80% of the ECPT minus your bid, on top of the normal guarantee (Works Manual para 5.2). On a ₹1 crore ECPT, a ₹72 lakh bid means an extra ₹8 lakh guarantee. See performance security in tenders.

State PWD SOR: where to find yours

The NIT names the SOR. These are the official pages we checked on 8 October 2026:

A few points from these pages:

• West Bengal notified on 7 July 2026 that its own SOR volumes are superseded. Building works now use the CPWD DSR, with a small state booklet for minor and maintenance items missing from the DSR.
• Uttar Pradesh publishes SORs by circle (Lucknow, Prayagraj, Meerut and so on), so rates differ by area.
• Karnataka updates material "issue rates" each quarter within the year's Common SR.

For road and bridge works under CPWD, the justification follows the analysis in MORTH's Standard Data Book (SOP 5/3). You can browse live civil works tenders and CPWD tenders on GovtTenderHub and check which SOR each one uses.

Common questions

What is the full form of SOR in civil engineering?

SOR stands for Schedule of Rates: a department's list of standard work items with their units and rates. CPWD's version for Delhi is the DSR, the Delhi Schedule of Rates. The glossary explains other tender terms.

What is the latest CPWD DSR?

For civil works, DSR 2023 (Vol 1 and 2), in force from 16 October 2023, was still the newest edition on CPWD's site on 8 October 2026. For electrical and mechanical work it is DSR (E&M) 2025.

What is the difference between DSR and DAR?

The DSR gives the rate for each item. The DAR shows how that rate is calculated: quantities of labour, materials and machinery, plus water charges, GST, 15% contractor's profit and overheads, and cess.

Is GST included in DSR rates?

Yes. DSR 2023 includes GST at 18% on works contracts in every item. The basic material rates inside the DAR are without GST, and the GST is added in the analysis.

What does "10% below SOR" mean?

It means you offer to do the work for 10% less than the estimated cost put to tender, which is built mainly from SOR rates. On a ₹50 lakh estimate, that is a ₹45 lakh bid.

What is a non-schedule item?

An item of work that is not in the SOR. The engineer prices it from a market rate analysis and approves its description and specification before it goes into the tender. No cost index is added to it.

What is cost index in DSR?

A number that tracks how construction costs have moved since a base date and how they differ by place. CPWD issues it on 1 April and 1 October. DSR 2023 corresponds to a cost index of 107 on the PAR 2021 base.