The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has acted against the concessionaire and officials linked to the Lucknow-Kanpur Expressway after the newly inaugurated road developed cracks just days after its inauguration.
It has also suspended toll collection on the expressway until recovery works are completed.
“NHAI has taken stringent action against the concessionaire, Independent Engineer and concerned officials following the identification of issues on the Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway. Immediate corrective measures have also been initiated to restore the affected stretch and strengthen quality assurance mechanisms. At present, traffic has been diverted at this spot and is plying smoothly,” the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said on Wednesday.
The issue came to light after parts of the road began to cave in following the first rains after the inauguration. The concessionaire for the Rs 4,850-crore project is PNC Infratech. NHAI has issued a notice proposing to declare PNC Infratech a non-performer, under which it would become ineligible to participate in bidding for future NHAI projects.
“Also, a show-cause notice has been issued to the concessionaire to levy a penalty of 2 per cent of the performance security, initiate debarment proceedings for up to three years against the Head of Pavement/Highways and other responsible staff, and downgrade the concessionaire rating (Pavement Condition Index), which will adversely impact eligibility for future NHAI projects,” the ministry said.
The concessionaire has also been directed to undertake complete rectification of the affected stretch at its own cost, estimated at around Rs 3 crore so far, without any financial implication for NHAI. Out of a total length of 63 km, a slippage of about 300 metres was observed on July 26, the ministry said.
It added that NHAI has initiated disciplinary action against officials for lapses in project monitoring and supervision. The project manager of the construction agency, Vivek Kumar Gupta, the team leader of the Independent Engineer, Surendra Kumar, and the resident engineer, Yatendra Kumar, have been removed from the project and debarred from participating in any projects of the ministry, NHAI and the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) for two years.
The present project director, Nakul Prakash Verma, has been repatriated to his parent department.
“In addition, a charge sheet is being issued against the former Project Director, Saurabh Chaurasia, during whose tenure substantial construction took place, and Verma for alleged negligence in the discharge of their responsibilities,” the ministry said.
The Independent Engineer, Theme Engineering Services, has also been proposed for debarment.
