FLYOVER to vigilance

Kochi: The Ernakulam unit of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB), on Tuesday inspected the Palarivattom flyover following a direction from the government to launch an inquiry to check whether there was corruption in the construction.

A team led by K. Karthik, superintendent of police, VACB, central range, visited the spot and ascertained the damage on the bridge.

"The inquiry will be wrapped up in a month," an officer in the team said. “We will take expert opinions regarding the design and construction and the quality of material used."

The VACB will register an FIR only if there is prima facie evidence of corruption in the construction. The documents related to allotment of  the tender would also be examined. The VACB will record statements of the contractor, officials with PWD, RBDCK and KITCO.

The flyover was closed on May 1 after cracks were found on the bridge and a flaw in its construction was detected.

It was planned to close the bridge for 30 days but an IIT team which visited the bridge suggested major repairs that would last four months.

Wow! KITCO to forgo its fees for flyover

KITCO, the consultancy firm responsible for designing Palarivattom flyover, has decided to forgo its fees and co-operate with the vigilance probe after an expert IIT Madras team found "serious flaws" in the design.

"We're not going to take fees for the project...We'll clear the air from our side once the vigilance probe report is out," said G. Pramod, one of the acting managing directors of KITCO.

As per the agreement, the consultancy firm will be paid 2.6 per cent of total construction cost of Rs 47 crore, which amounts to Rs 12.22 lakh.

The project design was submitted to the implementing agency, Roads and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala (RBDCK), by the contractor, Delhi-based RDS Ltd and the KITCO was responsible for its detailed scrutiny and approval.

 "Under the agreement, the contractor had to submit the project plan meeting certain conditions. We engaged the reputed Kitco as design consultant since the bridge was being constructed using a new technology and Kitco had been engaged in some of the prestigious projects like the Kannur airport," said an RBDCK official.

Meanwhile, the official said the payments to the contractor and KITCO have not been made for "some time" ever since the flaws were noticed.

A 10-member IIT Madras team led by Dr P. Alagusundaramoorthy, professor, structural engineering laboratory, department of civil engineering, found technical flaws both in designing and also the quality of construction.