CHENNAI: The Rs 15.9-crore bridge built across Thenpennai river, connecting Agarampallipattu and Thondamanur villages in Tiruvannamalai district, which was inaugurated last September and washed away in the unprecedented floods in December during Cyclone Fengal, was not constructed as per the design standards recommended by the Indian Road Congress for high-level bridges.
Soon after the bridge’s collapse, the highways department had said that the bridge was designed to withstand flood levels up to 54,000 cusecs and on the day of the collapse (December 3), the water flow in the river was triple the level at 1.68 lakh cusecs.
However, documents released on Wednesday by NGO Arappor Iyakkam showed that the maximum water discharge recorded in the last 100 years was not taken into consideration, as recommended by the IRC.
It said that this is despite the Public Works Department communicating to the state highways before the finalisation of the contract for the bridge that a maximum discharge of 2.8 lakh cusecs was recorded in the river near the proposed site in 1972, which is 40 % lesser than the discharge witnessed during the floods in December.
Jayaram Venkatesan, convenor, Arappor Iyakkam, said while the design itself had flaws, there are also doubts whether the quality of the construction was maintained at least per the design.
Pointing out that bridges upstream and downstream were intact during the floods, he said, “A few other bridges on the river were also made for reduced flood discharge and not for maximum flood discharge. However, those were not affected. Despite this, no accountability was fixed yet,” added Jayaraman.
Accusing the highways department of failing to conduct a proper study and due diligence while designing the bridge and shielding the officials responsible for ‘faulty design’, the NGO has filed a complaint with the DVAC to register a case against the officials and the private contractor.
In his complaint to the DVAC, Venkatesan said it needs to be ascertained whether the foundation was laid as per the design specification of around 4.7 meters below the lowest bed level. “Photos reveal that pillars have toppled and uprooted,” he said. The project, executed by the NABARD rural wing of the highways, was built by ASR Construction Company. Officials were not available to comment on the allegations.