Top official refutes allegations on Polavaram quality

Vijayawada: Water resources department engineer-in-chief (ENC) Narasimha Murthy asserted that the Polavaram project works are being executed strictly in line with approved technical parameters, refuting allegations over quality and design compliance. He explained that the project is being constructed as per designs vetted by the Panel of Experts (PoE) and the Central Water Commission (CWC), the apex technical body for water resources in India.Murthy emphasized that every structural component — including spillway works, earth-cum-rock fill dam sections, diaphragm wall, and approach channels — is being executed based on approved drawings and clearances. "There is absolutely no deviation from the approved specifications," he said.He noted that all issues flagged by PoE during inspections were promptly rectified and reviewed to the panel's satisfaction. Allegations of lapses, unauthorized changes, or incomplete works were countered with technical evaluations from IIT Tirupati, PoE, CWC, and CWPRS. The diaphragm wall construction, handled by Bauer, a global firm, initially faced concrete bleeding issues, which were resolved through IIT Tirupati's studies and approved by PoE.On claims of unauthorized reduction in diaphragm wall height, Murthy clarified that AFRY, the design agency, proposed a 3-m embedment into the core, approved by PoE. The wall's top was adjusted to EL +18.50 m, with cores taken every 50 m confirming compliance.He added that CWPRS model studies recommended a 500-m rockfill bund on the spillway's left side, completed in April 2023. A slippage during approach channel excavation in June 2023 was stabilized with CWC-approved measures. About 75% of the planned 2.3-km channel at EL +17.0 m bed level is complete.Murthy also said the original 23-m core construction was revised to 24 m for Gap I, considering deep soil mixing in the ECRF dam.