A two-member team of experts has expressed apprehension that use of substandard construction material could have led to the collapse of a portion of the elevated corridor on Sohna Road and suggested the need for a review of the design.
Two separate complaints have been filed in the matter by RTI activists, seeking registration of FIRs.
Around 40-metre-long span between two piers of the 4.75-km-long under-construction elevated corridor on National Highway-248A had crashed late on Saturday evening.
The corridor is part of the six-laning and strengthening of 22-km-long stretch of the highway, starting from Rajiv Chowk.
Experts Alok Bhowmik and Vinay Gupta visited the spot along with top National Highway Authority officials on Sunday. Mr. Bhowmik was of the view that may be the quality of concrete of crushed segment was not up-to-the-mark, while Mr. Gupta stressed the need for holistic review of the design.
Third-party testing
They suggested there is a need for a third-party testing of the concrete.
Since a portion of the collapsed span is still hanging from one of the piers, the experts suggested placing of sand bags under the hanging portion to arrest the impact if it falls further and develop proper methodology to take down the hanging portion. They also suggested third-party test of the source of materials.
The spot of collapse has been cordoned off. The preliminary report of the collapse stated that it was “gradual”.
A group of RTI activists and whistle-blowers, Aadhikar, has written to the Central Vigilance Commission, the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate alleging that government officials, in collusion with the contractor, apparently ignored the CPWD works manual guidelines for “extraneous considerations” and sought registration of FIR under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Another RTI activist, Mahender Kumar, wrote to the Station House Officer, Sadar, saying that the incident hinted at corruption and demanded registration of a case.
Manjari Kapoor, a resident of Orchid Petals, said the construction site was not barricaded when the portion of corridor collapsed. Ms. Kapoor said her car was only a metre away from the spot and had a narrow escape. She was on her way to her sister’s place near Subhash Chowk when the portion of the corridor came crashing down.
