The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) team which is probing alleged irregularities in the construction of the Palarivattom flyover will mostly submit their report this week to the State government through the agency’s director.
Evidence of corruption
“A technical report on alleged inferior quality of construction, for which we had collected samples of concrete and other material from the flyover and sent them for testing, will mostly be ready on Wednesday. The VACB probe that was ordered by the State government about two weeks ago is aimed at ascertaining whether there is prima facie evidence of corruption or any cognisable offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act,” said a senior Vigilance official.
Filing of FIR
“We will file an FIR if we stumble upon evidence of corruption or other irregularities and launch an in-depth probe.”
Officials of the Roads and Bridges Development Corporation of Kerala (RBDCK), the agency which built the structure, and of KITCO, the project’s consultant, would be questioned again if required, to zero in on what led to the structure suffering structural cracks and potholes, within two years of construction, he said.
The then managing directors of RBDCK and KITCO and other officials concerned were questioned last week, besides staffers of the contracting firm RDS Projects. A few more might be questioned if needed, said official sources.
Preliminary probe
A preliminary probe suggests that the structure has suffered extensive damage and will have to be rehabilitated. This was due to inadequate use of steel and cement, besides improper bitumen surfacing and expansion joints.
Structural repairs
The flyover has been closed for repair work of the surface and the work is slated to be completed by May-end. Structural repairs to mend the cracks in over half a dozen pier caps was expected to be taken up for a three-month-period from September, after the monsoons subsided, the sources added.