BHUBANESWAR: Balangir MLA Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo has urged Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to carry out an independent technical enquiry into the alleged structural damage to newly-constructed Chattamakhana Dam in Balangir district in the recent rains.
In a letter to the chief minister, who also holds the Water Resources portfolio, Singh Deo stated that the damage to the dam included washing away of the cut-off wall and failure of the downstream embankments. They raised serious concerns over the safety and structural adequacy of the project.
“That a public asset completed so recently should sustain damage to this nature is a matter of grave concern and points not to ordinary distress but to fundamental deficiencies in the design under which the dam was built,” he stated.
In his representation, Singh Deo pointed out that while the project was executed on an EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) basis, the sanctioned design underwent significant changes from the original tender design.
He said the overall waterway was reduced from 256 mtr to 206 mtr, the number of gates brought down from 18 to 14 and the impervious floor length reduced from 80 mtr to 50 mtr, while the design discharge of 2,760 cumec remained unchanged.
He requested the chief minister to order an independent enquiry to examine whether the revised design complied with applicable engineering standards and if it was capable of safely handling the prescribed flood discharge.
“A transparent, independent and time-bound technical enquiry must be conducted and if any deficiencies are found, the structure must be repaired immediately at the contractor’s cost while ensuring the safety of the public,” he said.
