L&T, Afcons Flag Issues Over NDSA; Expert Panel Proposed
Agencies write to department for clarifications on instructions issued to them
Hyderabad: A long-drawn out process appears to be on the cards with respect to prospects of undertaking any repairs to the stricken Kaleshwaram lift irrigation scheme barrages at Medigadda, Sundilla and Annaram, with the irrigation department finding itself in a piquant situation of seeking clarifications from the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) on its final report.
Following the May 19 meeting with representatives of the agencies that built the barrages, Afcons (Annaram), L&T PES-JV (Medigadda), and Navayuga (Sundilla) the first two wrote to the department seeking clarifications on instructions issued to them to take up various tests as recommended by the NDSA in its final report.
The department is learnt to have been put in an unenviable position of questioning the NDSA, with L&T PES-JV, in its letter on May 24, taking to the irrigation department’s notice what it described as ‘inconsistencies’ in the NDSA’s report and asking the department to seek clarifications.
The company, referring to the executive summary, said the NDSA report referring to quality control of the secant pile cutoffs construction had said in its executive summary that “no quality control procedures were implemented to ensure water tightness of the cutoff walls.”
This, L&T PES-JV pointed out, was a contradiction as the NDSA in detailed observation in the report elsewhere had said that the “quality management programme (QMP) documents for Medigadda barrage were submitted by the construction agency. It helps project management teams establish quality planning, quality control, and quality assurance procedures to maintain quality standards during project execution and completion.”
The letter from L&T PES-JV which provided further details of its contentions, asked the irrigation department for its own review of the matter, and also asked it to take this up with the NDSA “for updating their report considering” the points raised by the company.
Afcons, in its letter dated May 23 to the department, sought the immediate engaging of a qualified specialised agency or a design consultant to undertake rehabilitation design of the Annaram barrage. Assuring all assistance to the department, the company made it clear that all technical specifications for the required tests, including exact locations they need to be conducted at, or boreholes that need to be drilled, must be provided by the department.
It is learnt that the department finds itself in a cleft stick even with respect to finding an agency or more than one of them willing to take up the required design work for repairs. Sources said that the department was mulling setting up a committee of experts drawn from various institutions to help find the way forward in terms of tests to be done, and which agency can assist in the design aspects.
Recently, irrigation minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy had said that the department had reached out to the Bauer Group that is assisting the AP government in construction of diaphragm wall for the Polavaram project, which too had its share of disasters in the past.
But, the sources said, this company said it did not want to be involved in any repair design work. The Central Designs Organisation of the irrigation department, which had provided the original designs for the barrages, had already thrown up its hands saying it cannot provide any repair designs, putting the department in the position it finds itself in now.
Important Points:
Repair designs for Kaleshwaram barrages stuck in limbo
Irrigation department mulling forming committee of experts to figure out technical requirements, find a design agency
L&T PES-JV cites inconsistencies in NDSA report on quality related issues, asks irrigation department to clarify, and seek clarifications from NDSA
Afcons which built Annaram barrage makes it clear that unless a design agency gives specifications for required tests, it cannot proceed
