SRINAGAR: The Union Government has said that one National Highway project in Jammu and Kashmir was penalised for poor workmanship during the last five years, with the contractor being blacklisted and fined one per cent of the project cost.
Replying to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said action had been taken against contractors, concessionaires and consultants wherever highway projects suffered collapses, failures or major deficiencies due to poor workmanship, design flaws, inadequate supervision or other factors.
According to the Ministry, Jammu and Kashmir recorded one such case in 2022, in which the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor was penalised by imposing a fine equivalent to one per cent of the project cost and was subsequently blacklisted.
The Minister said penalties imposed across the country in similar cases have included termination of contracts, recovery of damages, debarment, blacklisting, declaration of contractors as non-performers and classification of failures as “catastrophic”, depending on the severity of violations and contractual provisions.
The Centre said third-party quality auditors are deployed on a case-to-case basis during different stages of National Highway construction to independently assess compliance with prescribed quality standards. Consultants and Authority Engineers or Independent Engineers are also appointed for day-to-day supervision, while officials of executing agencies carry out periodic inspections.
To strengthen quality control and accountability, the Ministry has introduced several technology-based monitoring systems, including automated and machine-aided construction practices, mandatory Network Survey Vehicle assessments at project completion and every six months thereafter, the NHAI One App for geo-tagged reporting and rectification of highway defects, drone-based monitoring through the Drone Analytics Monitoring System (DAMS) using artificial intelligence, and pilot deployment of Mobile Quality Control Vans equipped with non-destructive testing equipment.
The Ministry said these measures are aimed at ensuring National Highways are constructed and maintained in accordance with the quality standards prescribed by the Indian Roads Congress.
