‘Lokayukta told govt to have more checks in place for accountability in public projects’
While no one was injured in the Ahmedabad incident, two other projects by Ranjit Buildcon Limited had also witnessed accidents in Surat, one leading to a death.
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A top official of the Gujarat Assembly secretariat said that the workshop has been organised under the guidance of Assembly Speaker Shankar Chaudhary to give exposure of legislative drafting like rules, notifications, and Bills to the new generation of the state bureaucracy.Taking suo motu cognizance of media reports of Mumatpura overbridge collapse at South Bopal in Ahmedabad in December 2021, the Gujarat Lokayukta had ordered a probe and suggested “more checks and balances” to ensure “accountability” for the poor performance of public projects undertaken by private companies.
In the 23rd annual consolidated report of the Gujarat Lokayukta from April 1, 2022 till March 31, 2023 – which was tabled in the Assembly on Wednesday – it was stated that the Lokayukta initiated the inquiry taking suo motu cognition of media reports, including that of The Indian Express.
A part of an under-construction overbridge at Mumatpura had collapsed after a slab had fallen through during an in-situ stressing exercise. The work was being conducted under the aegis of Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA), which had awarded the contract for the bridge to Unjha-based Ranjit Buildcon Private Limited.
While no one was injured in the Ahmedabad incident, two other projects by Ranjit Buildcon Limited had also witnessed accidents in Surat, one leading to a death.
The report stated that during the inquiry, the Lokayukta had opined that “there has to be some checks and accountability for poor performance and lapses and negligence in performance of work, both by the contractor and by agency like AUDA or the project consultancy (firm), which has been appointed to supervise the execution of the project”.
It added that calling for “suitable measures for a foolproof system” for executing such projects with accountability, while also ensuring “regular and constant supervision as well as sampling and testing” to ensure quality control, the Lokayukta had expressed hope that the state urban development and urban housing department will “take appropriate measures for fixing accountability and other strict measures for future”.
The Lokayukta had further observed that it is desirable to have “more checks and balances for the accountability of poor performance in such projects”, as in case of a mishap, “issues would be raised regarding liability of the government and the issues of responsibility of the government may be raised for outsourcing or giving the contract without proper measures”.
The Lokayukta had foretold that in case of a mishap, the government’s responsibility will be questioned, putting it in an “awkward position” for not taking appropriate measures to make the contractor accountable and ensuring quality control.
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