SURAT, June 2: Standing committee members of the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) have asked technical advisor P C Shah to probe into the alleged damage to the Athwalines flyover.The flyover, constructed by Ahmedabad-based Vijay Construction company, developed cracks within one year of being thrown open to traffic. Standing Committee Chairman Natu Soma Patel said that though there no major damages, experts had to be contacted to find out its cause.When contacted, P C Shah, who was yet to visit the spot, said that though it could not be been structural damages, the `superficial cracks' may have developed due to the poor quality of work and not due to the quality of the construction material. However, it still called for an enquiry, he added.According to Municipal commissioner S Jagadeesan though the damages were minor, a enquiry had to be ordered whenever there were such damages. He, however, ruled out blacklisting the construction company.Meanwhile, when some officials of the company approached the commissioner to get a certificate of appreciation, Jagadeesan refused to oblige.One of the reason for not entertaining the company's request is said to be its claim for Rs 5 crores `loss of profit', following the cancellation of a project by the SMC. The company was given a contract of Rs 20 crore for the construction of Ved Road Davoli bridge in the early 1990s. But later the construction, which had not yet begun, was not considered viable and stopped. The company, according to the commissioner, may have a incurred a loss of Rs 5 to 6 lakh only, but it claimed an amount about 25 per cent of the cost of the project as compensation.Though the commissioner ruled out blacklisting the company for its undue demand, he said that if the company's loss of profit against a project worth Rs 20 crores was Rs 5 crores, the company was not worth encouraging. Top
