BMRC to hire more independent consultants to check the quality of work

Bengaluru (Urban Transport News): After finding damaged and missing bearings in another metro pillar, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRC) is set to hire more independent consultants to check the quality of work in different areas.

The metro train operation was suspended between MG Road and Baiyappanahalli station till 11.00 am of today. BMRC officials have identified a structural flaw in pillar number 8 near Indira Nagar station. The bearings of the pillars were found missing and damaged.

Independent consultants for other stretches too

Now, BMRC is focusing on the stretch between Baiyappanahalli and Whitefield and also roping in independent agencies to audit the ongoing work at other stretches too. The metro extension work is ongoing from Nayandahalli to Kengeri, Nagasandra to Bengaluru International Exhibition Center (BIEC), Kanakapura road to Anjanapura Township, and RV Road to Bommasandra.

The duration of auditing work is set one year for Reach 2A, 2B, 3C, and 4B from Mysore Road to Kengeri (Reach 2A and 2B on the Blue line), Nagasandra to BIEC, and Puttenahalli Cross to Anjanapura Township, while it will be two years for the rest of the stretches, reported Bangalore Mirror.

In July, the corporation has floated tenders, inviting eligible firms for independent consultancy work to monitor quality for the elevated Metro corridor of Reach 1A and 1B (from Baiyappanahalli to Whitefield), which is a part of phase II of the Bangalore Metro Rail project. Commenting on the tender notice, a senior BMRC official said,

After finalising an agency, experienced engineers will be looking over the progress of the work to check whether everything is going as planned and will make several site visits for the same. We needed an external agency to audit the quality of the work, and prepare reports regularly to check on the progress.

In December last year, one of the pillars had developed cracks, and a slider that is holding the bridge together had got dislocated. In 2012, just after the Baiyappanahalli to MG Road train started operation, the corporation had found an issue with the same pillar and had narrowed it down to honeycomb formation. The construction of the entire project was done under the close supervision of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).