Metro mishap: Sreedharan blames design consultant

Putting the blame on 'deficiency in design and material' for the July 12 mishap which claimed six lives, Delhi Metro on Tuesday claimed that a design consultant firm which inspected the site 'misled' them and the contractor about the condition of the pier which collapsed.

The DMRC is also serving a show-cause notice to contractor Gammon India, which was carrying out the work at Zamrudpur accident site, to explain why it should not be blacklisted for two years, besides suspending its two deputy chief engineers.

It also blacklisted Arch Consultant, design consultant of Gammon India, for five years besides issuing a 'major penalty chargesheet' to Chief Engineer (Design) Rajan Kataria. Making the findings of a probe into the Zamrudpur accident public, Delhi Metro chief E Sreedharan said Tandon Constructions were appointed by them to inspect the site after cracks were reported.

"The crack on the pier 67 was first noticed on April 1 and we approached them on April 3. They gave us a report on April 15, saying that there was no inadequacy in the design. The consultant misled the DMRC and contractor," Sreedharan told a press conference.

The Board of Directors of DMRC, which met on Monday to study the report of the three-member panel headed by IIT professor A K Nagpal, decided to blacklist Tandon Construction for two years.

According to the report, Sreedharan said, the design of the cantilever pier which collapsed in Zamrudpur was not adequately taken care of. "There was a deficiency of steel at critical areas besides a major deficiency in reinforcement detailing," he said.

On the strength of concrete, he said it "failed in strength criteria by a wide margin",  though the quality of the materials used were of acceptable levels. Sreedharan said that the accident had resulted in a three-month delay in the completion of the Noida line, but he expressed confidence that all Phase II projects will be completed before Commonwealth Games next year.

"We will finish all the projects linked to Phase II before the commencement of the Commonwealth Games 2010," he said.

Sreedharan said the DMRC will now insist on a second-level of quality and safety assurance for its works.