Velachery MLA pulls up contractor over SWD work

Chennai: Velachery MLA R Kumar has asked GCC to withhold payment to a contractor after flagging quality defects during an inspection of a stormwater drain (SWD) work project in Jeevarathnam Nagar.When Kumar inspected a SWD site on Jeevarathnam Nagar Second Street on Monday, he came prepared with measuring tapes. The video, showed officials measuring the height of the drain which was above the road level. Kumar then told the contractor that the concrete density of the drain was supposed to be 0.175m but the side walls were found to be 0.155m and top slab was 0.160m "You are being paid in full for the specified thickness. Yet, you are not using adequate concrete," the MLA told the contractor, directing the GCC executive engineer to issue a letter recording the inspection remarks and asking for corrective work to be carried out. The letter to the contractor mentioned the remarks found during the inspection, along with the time, work order details and officials present in the inspection. It had the signatures of assistant engineer and executive engineer.Kumar told TOI he began inspecting his area street by street and is looking at quality of work. "I've instructed GCC to stop payments till the contractor rectifies the work. The GCC executive engineer has to get the letter acknowledged by the contractor, and I will inspect it again," he said. A zonal official from Adyar said they have instructed the contractor to remove the topslab and add more concrete. "The contractor has agreed to fix it," he said.