Report holds construction firm responsible

The three-member committee set up to investigate into the caving in of a section of the under-construction Bomikhal flyover which killed a worker and injured another on May 4, submitted  its findings to the Works Minister on Thursday blaming the executing agency Panda Infra for the mishap.  

Works Minister Prafulla Mallick at a Press conference said, “The firm had not adopted necessary safety measures while carrying out the construction work. The workers engaged in the project were also not skilled enough. The company has been debarred from the project.”

Mallick also said that all the departmental officials involved with the project would be issued show-cause notices.

“The State Government would now take over the construction work of the Bomikhal and Lingaraj over-bridges and complete them in two months,” the Minister informed.

“After completion of the projects, a third party would inspect the quality and safety aspects of the structures,” he said, adding that new tenders would be floated for construction of over-bridges in Jatni and Sambalpur.

Meanwhile, the Commissionerate police on Thursday arrested Panda Infra director Prashant Padhi in connection with the Bomikhal mishap. Earlier, owner of construction firm Pratap Kishore Panda was arrested a day after the incident.