The Hindu Business Line : Ministry adopts quality checks for road projects

New Delhi May 23 Even as the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, hoped that road development in rural areas is not hit by corruption, Rural Development Ministry officials said that they have adopted a multi-layered monitoring strategy to ensure transparency in the projects.

The quality checks are done right from the detailed project report (DPR) preparation stage to the road construction stage.

"The DPRs are cross checked by Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and State-level engineering colleges. So the problem of massive changes in scope of work at the DPR stage is handled," Mr Jugal Kishore Mohapatra, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Rural Development told Business Line, when contacted.

When road construction begins, independent agencies are appointed at the State level as well as at the Central level to monitor the progress.

"The national level quality monitors are appointed by a high level committee headed by Director, Central Road Research Institute. The personal details of applicants (name, address, etc) are not revealed to the selection committee — the committee evaluates and selects monitors based on qualifications only," he said.

Moreover, during road construction, the details of materials purchased and used by contractors are put on a citizen's information board in the local area.

More Stories on : Infrastructure | Roadways | Standards & Benchmarks

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Monsoon may be delayed by 3-4 days

Govt mulls online bidding for 3G spectrum

Bharti Airtel crosses 40-m subscriber mark

L&T faces an exodus of skilled workmen, after losing engineers

Top Indian cos may raise IT spend 26% this fiscal

Manmohan decries corruption in road projects

Ministry adopts quality checks for road projects

Alembic in licensing pact with Belgian co

Kobe Steel in talks with Chowgules for new plant

NIIT Tech Q4 net profit rises 139% to Rs 46 cr