The Hindu : 'HC Bench building defects minor, structure sound: Hoda

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 16, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

'HC Bench building defects minor, structure sound: Hoda

By Our Staff Reporter

MADURAI FEB. 15. Even as the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption is yet to conclude its investigations into "irregularities" in the construction of High Court Bench buildings here, which surfaced during a 48-hour "surprise check", a high-level committee led by the Home Secretary, Syed Munir Hoda, gave a clean chit to the quality of the structure.

Accompanied by the PWD Secretary, M. Kutralingam, and experts from the civil engineering wing, Mr. Hoda spent an hour at the construction site at Ulaganeri this evening.

According to the committee, the structure was "sound" and the DVAC action would not stall the inauguration of the Bench in anyway.

"The defects pointed out by the DVAC (shortage in the thickness of marble stone and tiles by 2 mm) are minor in nature, which can be rectified.

If the materials are found fit, appropriate deductions would be made in bill settlement, besides initiation of action against erring officials and contractors," he told presspersons.

Going by specifications, the marble stone (of 20 mm thickness) should have been laid on 10,146 square meters at a cost of Rs. 90 lakhs.

When the DVAC check was carried out, an 18 mm thick marble stone was laid on 2,789 square meters.

Similarly, 18 mm thick tiles (instead of 20 mm) were laid on 21,101 square meters.

"The quantum of misappropriation is negligible when compared to the total project cost (Rs. 52.49 crores) and it would not be fair to condemn the whole building for such minor discrepancies," he said and added that PWD engineers even rejected a particular quality marble stone on 300 square meters.

Ruling out the possibility of the Bench inauguration on April 14, he said the Government was "keen on expediting the process to deliver judicial remedies to the people of the southern districts at their doorstep".

Funds for pending works (Rs. 7.6 crores), including flooring, installing furniture, airconditioning and some electrical wiring, had been sanctioned and tenders were floated.

"The Government is particular that the works should be completed at the earliest," he said.

As to when the results of samples sent by the DVAC to the laboratory would come and why the investigating agency had not registered a case even after establishing the allegations `prima facie', Mr. Hoda said he was "not aware of its operations".

The Home Secretary preferred not to comment on the charges of "nexus between engineers and contractors" and submission of "fake documents" to take up works on `benami' names, unearthed by the DVAC.

The PWD Chief Engineer, Jayachandran, and a scientist from the Structural Engineering and Research Centre, Mani, are committee members.

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