The police on Saturday registered a case against the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and its contractor for the damage caused to the Hero Honda Chowk flyover for the second time within a year.
The case was registered against unnamed officials of the NHAI and its contractor, Valecha Engineering Ltd,under sections 336 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code on the complaint of an RTI activist, who had approached a local court last week.
On May 8, a large chunk of concrete fell off the surface of the flyover in the wee hours causing a large hole on the road.
The police, when asked about the matter, said there was a standard operating procedure for investigating such cases as there were several technicalities to consider. “The investigating team will probe the case after which further course of action will be decided,” Gurugram police spokesperson Subash Boken said.
Ramesh Kumar, the RTI activist who lodged the complaint, alleged that poor quality construction material had been used in the construction, which resulted in the structure getting damaged.
“The contractor, in connivance with NHAI officials, has indulged in malpractice and it is important that this probe be conducted on a fast track basis. The concrete samples should be analysed in a private lab instead of a government lab so the result is available in a month,” he said.
The NHAI, meanwhile, said that it has formed a committee to study the damage to the structure as it has taken place twice in the same stretch and emphasised that it was a localised problem.
“We have shared the details of all the information sought by the police and our technical team is also probing the damage. The structure of the flyover is safe and the problem is related to the deck surface. We will cooperate with the police investigation,” said a senior NHAI official, seekign anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media.
Earlier on May 15, a three-member NHAI technical team had visited the Hero Honda Chowk flyover and examined the damaged surface. The team had said that they would probe the matter and suggest tests to check its structural integrity.
The 1.4km flyover was sanctioned on August 28, 2014, and constructed at a cost of Rs197 crore.
First Published:
May 28, 2019 03:52 IST
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