Metro 4 cement block collapse in Mumbai: MMRDA suspends two more officials, orders departmental inquiry against chief engineer, moves to terminate project’s general consultant

Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) expanded disciplinary action across multiple levels of its engineering hierarchy in the fatal concrete parapet collapse incident by suspending two more officials, ordering a departmental inquiry against a chief engineer, and moving to terminate its general consultant — signalling one of the strongest internal responses to a construction site lapse in recent Metro project history.On Feb 14, a 6ft×4 ft concrete parapet segment of the underconstruction Metro Line 4 (Wadala–Kasarvadavali) viaduct fell on an autorickshaw and a car passing below on LBS Road in Mulund West, killing a 50-year-old man and injuring three others. MMRDA had suspended executive engineer Satyajeet Salve on the day of the incident and imposed a preliminary penalty of Rs 5 crore on contractor RAJV-Milan Infra and Rs 1 crore on the general consultant, D B Hill–LBG consortium.
Sources said that at the 160th MMRDA meeting chaired by deputy chief minister and urban development minister Eknath Shinde on Monday, the authority decided to suspend superintending engineer Abhijit Bhisikar. He was responsible for ensuring adherence to safety protocols at the site, but allegedly failed to conduct a mandatory inspection after the parapet segment was installed 10-12 hours before the incident.The authority also suspended deputy engineer Snehal Sawant, and ordered a departmental inquiry against chief engineer Madhukar Kharat. Kharat and Bhisikar were part of the special intensive safety inspection team set up to review the entire Wadala–Kasarvadavali Metro 4 corridor, and were appointed deputy team leaders for inspection of the Sonapur-Gainukh and Wadala-to-Sonapur stretches of the corridor.Officials said the general consultant, D B Hill–LBG consortium, was equally accountable, as its role includes supervision of construction quality, certification of safety compliance, and ensuring that contractors follow standard operating procedures before opening work zones to traffic below.At the meeting, MMRDA also resolved to set up an internal vigilance cell to carry out periodic and surprise inspections of project sites, identify safety violations, verify deployment of qualified manpower, and recommend disciplinary action in case of negligence.Mulund police probing the fatal concrete parapet collapse case are looking for welder Ram Ashish and civil consultant Suresh Sai. Police said it was Ram Ashish's responsibility to carry out welding of the slab, but he allegedly cut the two interlocks between the parapets and left it loose, causing it to fall. Since the incident, the two have been untraceable. "Now only these two persons can clarify why they cut the interlocking and left it loose," said an officer, adding that police are also awaiting MMRDA's internal report on the incident.