Malkangiri: The seven-member team of the CSIR-Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) on Sunday left for New Delhi after completing the audit of the Gurupriya Bridge in the cut-off areas of Chitrakonda block in Odisha’s Malkangiri district.
“We will submit a report to the Odisha government about the details of the audit of the bridge very soon,” team leader GK Sahoo told media persons here.
The three-day audit of the Gurupriya Bridge had started on May 31.
The central team, during its three-day stay in Malkangiri, had a detailed audit of the overall construction quality and the safety aspect of the bridge. Besides, the team also examined the precautions taken and the materials used in the construction of the bridge.
As informed by the State Works 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 was approved by the state government.
