Mumbai: BMC suspends engineer, fines contractor over shoddy concreting work

Add. BMC Commissioner Abhijit Bangar inspects concrete work. Pic/X@mybmc

In a strict action over negligence in road concreting work, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has suspended an assistant engineer of roads. The civic body also issued a fine of R50 lakh to the road contractor, while the quality control agency has been fined Rs 25 lakh.

The action comes after Additional Municipal Commissioner Abhijit Bangar on April 7 visited the 34th road in Bandra West, where he found the dry lean concrete (DLC) used in the sub-base layer ‘substandard'. Apart from this, poor gradation, mix design, and compaction, as well as surface irregularities, including unevenness and height variations, were also found. Taking serious note of these deficiencies, a show cause was issued to the assistant engineer, the contractor, and the quality control agency.

Bangar stated that maintaining quality in road works is a collective responsibility of the contractor, the quality control agency, and engineers concerned. "If faults are found, all responsible parties will be held accountable. Unintentional and unknowingly made mistakes may be forgiven, but any deliberate neglect or intentional wrongdoing will attract strict action," Bangar said. The contractor has been instructed to immediately remove the substandard work and redo it with proper quality.

"The required curing period for DLC is a minimum of seven days. When questioned at the site, the staff claimed that seven days had passed. However, in a written statement, the contractor later admitted that only three days had elapsed. Furthermore, the essential Field Dry Density (FDD) test during compaction was not conducted. Taking serious note of this negligence and oversight, a show cause was issued," said a BMC official.

Bangar said, "When such large-scale funds are being invested in the cement concrete road project, the works must reflect the highest quality. The BMC is firm on this expectation. Contractors, quality control agencies, and engineers must deliver work that meets these standards, or else the BMC administration will not hesitate to take strict action".