Thiruvananthapuram: PWD Minister G. Sudhakaran has withdrawn his order to stop the road works under the State Level Task Force following pressure from various quarters. The government had issued an order stating that all works under SLTF (work below Rs 25 lakh), which the previous UDF government had sanctioned from January 2016, have to be stopped. The LDF government had appointed a sub-committee to conduct a probe into the issue. Works under SLTF costing Rs 25 lakh and below are usually granted by the executive engineer.
“There had been complaints from the contractors and engineers as maintenance and small-scale works have been affected due to the order by the PWD minister. He has revoked his decision as common people had been affected,” said a PWD
official. Mr Sudhakaran said that legislators as well as local leaders had requested him to revoke his decision. But a high-level committee comprising chief technical officer in the finance department, PWD vigilance section and legislators would examine the estimate, requirement and plan works for the overlapping.
“The committee would examine the work before and after it is completed. It was after a detailed process that transparency was brought in completing the emergency maintenance works and an amount of '366 crore was allocated,” said Mr Sudhakaran. He added that each district has been allocated the requisite amount for the maintenance irrespective of the MLA’s party. Engineers have been asked to expedite the work on the potholed roads, he said.
