Malkangiri: A seven-member team of the CSIR-Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) began the three-day audit of the Gurupriya Bridge in the cut-off areas of Chitrakonda block in Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Thursday.
Informing the media persons, CRRI team leader GK Sahoo said the overall construction quality and the safety aspect of the bridge would be audited. Besides, the team will also examine the precautions taken and the materials used in the construction of the bridge.
As informed by state Works Department Secretary Nalinikanta Pradhan, preparations for the inauguration of the bridge will begin after the CRRI team submits its final report to the state government.
Pradhan said the trial run of the vehicles is being done after the construction of the bridge was completed. If any defect is found by the CRRI team during the inspection, it will be rectified and then opened to the public, he added.
In the wake of the collapse of a portion of a flyover in Bomikhal area in Odisha capital, the state government had decided to conduct a third-party audit of the Gurupriya bridge.
In a letter to the to the Director of CSIR (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research), Chief Engineer, DPI and Roads in the Works department, Om Prakash Patel had requested to conduct a third-party quality audit for the bridge, construction of which has been completed recently.
Responding to the request, the CSIR on May 7 had informed the Works Department about its willingness to conduct the audit at a cost of Rs 38.56 lakh which has been approved by the state government.
Later, executive engineer of the Works Department, Malkangiri on May 5 had deposited 50 percent of the amount (Rs 19.28 lakh) in the CSIR account. The department will release the remaining amount after submission of the final audit report, the sources added.
