Spot inspections expose quality lapses in MP road and bridge projects

The Madhya Pradesh Public Works Department has stepped up random site inspections to verify the quality of infrastructure projects across the state. The latest round of checks, conducted in seven districts, identified serious shortcomings in a number of road and bridge contracts.

A total of 34 projects were examined on a random basis, including 21 projects managed by the state PWD, six under the Project Implementation Unit, six by the Madhya Pradesh Road Development Corporation, and one by the Madhya Pradesh Building Development Corporation. The inspection reports were reviewed in an online meeting chaired by Chief Engineer R.L. Verma, with senior engineers K.P.S. Rana, S.R. Baghel and Ajay Srivastava in attendance.

The most notable breach involved a high‑level bridge under construction over the Pandarol Nala in Burhanpur's Sundar Nagar‑Kundan Dairy Road. The supervising divisional officer and the acting executive engineer were instructed to serve showcause notices to the officials directly responsible for the sub‑standard work.

In addition, the Hivra‑Haiderpur road project in Burhanpur failed to meet prescribed quality standards. As a result, the senior engineer ordered notices to the supervising officer and the assistant engineer, and directed the suspension of Kalika Furniture Industries' contractor registration pending a thorough review.