It was a race against time once again. The contractor for Water Resources Department failed to accomplish his task to temporary asphalt the Siolim-Marna-Mapusa MDR-6. This is the second year in running.
What surprises is the type of job that is carried out by the road contractor once the pipeline is laid. Why does the road sink after one shower of rain?
This shows that no inspection is done by the department engineers to see that the excavated mud when is put back into the trench is properly watered and soil packed. This type of substandard work is done to create more contracts for the same job while the sufferers are the residents living along the roads and the commuters and pedestrians are made to suffer, face accidents, get killed in the road accidents and lend in hospitals for treatment.
The vehicles get damaged, they too are sent to the garage for repairs. Finally, the contractor and concerned departments are happily retendering the same works of the road at the cost of the Exchequers money. It’s high time a proper tender is floated with guaranteed quality work to be carried out, once taken up. This MDR-6 we were told that the hot-mix will be done after the road has settled in this rain, what a shame to the engineering community for failing in the basics of providing quality job?
With the COVID-19 pandemic bringing to the halt the economic growth, the government has to do a rethink on the expenditure and see that in future quality work is done or the contractor faces the penalty and the department engineers are made accountable if there are loopholes in the tendering terms and conditions.
Till then “Siolcars” and the commuters will have another horrible months to live and die with it. Today’s pain is tomorrow’s contractor’s and doctor’s gain “khainch bhivpachi Goroz Na”. This is called good governance and may I add smart governance too. The poor consumer bears all the brunt. Do it simple, just divert the traffic with proper signage.
