BENGALURU: Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has issued a show-cause notice to three engineers of RR Nagar Division over "sub-standard" asphalting of the Mariyappanapalya Jnana Bharthi main road in Bangalore University campus.
A portion of the Mariyappanapalya Jnana Bharthi main road in Bangalore University campus, asphalted and repaired at a cost of Rs 6 crore, after a spell of overnight rain. The road, which is near Dr BR Ambedkar School of Economics (BASE), was re-laid just a couple of days before PM Modi's visit to inaugurate the BASE campus.
RR Nagar Executive Engineer MT Balaji, Assistant Executive Engineer HJ Ravi and Assistant Engineer I K Vishwas have been served notice. The show cause notice said, "The Asphalting work taken up for Mariyappanapalya main road in Bangalore University Campus is reported to be substandard work. There are visuals that the layer of asphalt is being removed by hand."
"By observation of the visuals, it is felt that there is no Standard Operation Procedure followed in the execution of the above-said work. Therefore, show cause notice is hereby issued calling upon your explanation about the said issue along with the test reports and also why action should not be initiated for failing to execute the work as per Standard Operation Procedure and also failing to discharge your duties as Executive Engineer on site," it added.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who reached the national capital on June 23, has instructed BBMP Commissioner Tushar Girinath to conduct an inquiry into the shoddy work and take appropriate action against those responsible for it.
The BBMP was criticised by many Resident Welfare Associations after the tar peeled off in many areas where BBMP had taken up development works during PM Modi's visit. The asphalted roads are wearing out at many locations and in some parts the roads are even caving in.
Media reports say that the Road Infrastructure Department of BBMP suspects negligence, and hence has issued the notice seeking an explanation.
The BBMP said that Rs 24 crore was spent on roads, drains, street lights and marking of white lines on newly-tarred roads. BBMP Special Commissioner Ramprasat Manohar had said that the work was executed with transparency and that the concerned contractor will be asked to fix it.
(With inputs from online desk, ANI, and IANS)