NHAI set up Design Division for review of Bridge and Structure Construction in India

New Delhi, India (Urban Transport News): The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) takes a proactive step toward enhancing infrastructure quality by introducing a dedicated Design Division. This division will oversee the design and construction processes for bridges, specialized structures, and tunnels, ensuring optimal standards are maintained.

Key Highlights

• Scope Enhancement: The newly established Design Division will create policies and guidelines for the entire life cycle of bridges, structures, tunnels, and Reinforced Earth (RE) walls on National Highways nationwide.
• Thorough Review: This division will engage in reviewing project preparations, new bridge constructions, condition assessments, rehabilitation of older bridges, health checks for critical structures, and more.
• Inclusive Assessment: The Design Division will also evaluate standalone bridges and specialized structures currently at the Detailed Project Report (DPR) stage, with DPRs initiated after June 2023.
• Expert Involvement: To ensure precision, the division will collaborate with Advisers, Consultant Teams, and experts in fields such as bridge design, tunneling, RE wall construction, geotechnical analysis, and material testing.
• Learning Initiatives: The division plans to conduct certification courses for professionals associated with the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH), NHAI, NHIDCL, contractors, and consultants. These courses will cover various aspects of design, construction, supervision, and maintenance of bridges, tunnels, and RE walls.
• Technology Integration: An IT-based monitoring system will be developed to manage bridge inventory, drawings, identification of distressed structures, and annual repair/construction plans.
• Expert Response Team: The division will nominate expert teams in case of bridge, structure, tunnel, or RE wall failures, issuing guidelines to prevent future occurrences.

In an era of expansive National Highway infrastructure development, NHAI's Design Division takes a proactive stride toward in-house capacity building. By embracing comprehensive reviews and adopting expert-driven approaches, NHAI aims to raise the quality and reliability of bridge and critical structure construction.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is an autonomous agency of the Government of India, set up in 1995 and is responsible for management of a network of over 50,000 km of National Highways out of 1,32,499 km in India. It is a nodal agency of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).