IIT Madras to carry out third-party inspections of Smart City projects in Puducherry

Puducherry Smart City Development Limited (PSCDL) has selected the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) to conduct a third-party inspection of ongoing and new projects under the Smart Cities Mission, to ensure that projects adhere to high quality and safety standards.

Puducherry Smart City Development Limited (PSCDL) has selected the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) to conduct a third-party inspection of ongoing and new projects under the Smart Cities Mission, to ensure that projects adhere to high quality and safety standards.

The Department of Civil Engineering of IIT Madras will check the quality and safety standards maintained by PSCDL for the execution of major projects under the Smart Cities Mission. IIT Madras has “in principle” agreed to carry out quality checks on projects, and PSCDL will be sending a proposal to the Puducherry government in this regard soon.

A team of experts from IIT-M who have carried out quality check services for various projects of the Union government including international projects, will be deployed. They will work in tandem with the PSCDL team. Most of the projects implemented under the Smart Cities Mission in Puducherry involve huge investments and third-party inspection of the work is necessary to check if standards are being followed during the construction, according to an official.

The expert team will initially inspect major ongoing and new work taken up by PSCDL. This includes the construction of a mini stadium at a cost of ₹12.19 crore, construction of multi-storey tenements at Chinnayapuram at a cost of ₹17.96 crore, reconstruction of the Goubert market at a cost of ₹36 crore, and the development of the existing bus stand at a cost ₹15.75 crore, D. Manikandan, Chief Executive Officer of PSCDL said.

“The objective is to ensure that a mechanism is in place to check the quality of construction. Most of the projects implemented by PSCDL involve huge footfalls and we cannot compromise on structural safety,” he said. The expert team from IIT-Madras will ensure that the construction work is accurate and without errors. “They will conduct periodic inspections on the status of the projects and suggest measures, if any are required, with regard to adherence to norms and quality parameters,” he added.

PSCDL has also asked other line departments to assign third-party quality assurance for major work being implemented under the Smart Cities Mission. The Public Works Department (PWD) will soon be floating a tender to select the agency to conduct third-party inspections of major work including disabled-friendly pedestrian paths at a cost of ₹120 crore and the iconic cycle track, costing ₹9.73 crore