Govt plans to engage third-party auditor to inspect NHs, e-ways
EIL had earlier carried out the task of third-party quality check during the construction of the Golden Quadrilateral, the country’s first flagship highway development programme under the then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In recent years, increased instances of deficiencies in NH projects have become a cause of concern, as these have attracted criticism from the public.
The Indian government is set to engage a third-party inspection agency for the quality assessment of approximately 5,000 kilometers of expressways and highway stretches. The Road Transport Ministry plans to onboard Engineers India Ltd (EIL), an engineering consultancy under the petroleum ministry, for a period of three years. Initially, the agency will focus on inspecting expressways, six-lane, and four-lane national highways.
Currently, third-party quality audits are carried out by independent quality auditors, who are mostly retired government engineers. However, EIL has a history of conducting third-party quality checks, having previously audited the Golden Quadrilateral, the country's first flagship highway development program under former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
In recent years, the poor feedback from independent auditors has led to the need for external inspection. The agency will verify compliance with technical specifications and standards as per contract.
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