The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has suspended toll collection on the Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway until repair work on a damaged section is completed and initiated disciplinary action against the concessionaire, project engineers and officials over alleged lapses in execution and supervision.
The decision comes less than a month after the 63-km expressway was inaugurated on July 13 and follows complaints from commuters over damaged portions and patchwork at several locations, particularly on the Unnao-Lucknow carriageway. Motorists had been paying a one-way toll of Rs 275 for cars, jeeps and vans, while the annual pass remained applicable.
“Till complete rectification, toll has been suspended. No toll will be charged from commuters on this expressway. Recovery of the toll loss will be done from the concessionaire,” the NHAI said in a statement on Wednesday.
According to the authority, the action follows a “slippage” reported near Km 64 of the expressway on July 26. Restoration work was taken up immediately after the incident, and traffic has been diverted at the affected location.
“At present, traffic has been diverted at this spot and is plying smoothly,” it said.
Concessionaire faces action
NHAI has issued a notice proposing to classify concessionaire PNC Infratech Ltd as a non-performer, a move that could make the company ineligible to bid for future NHAI projects.
The authority has also issued a show-cause notice proposing a penalty equivalent to 2% of the performance security, initiation of debarment proceedings for up to three years against the company’s head of pavement/highways and other responsible personnel, and a downgrade of the concessionaire’s performance rating.
In addition, the concessionaire has been directed to repair the affected stretch at its own expense. The rectification work is estimated to cost around Rs 3 crore.
Officials removed, IIT Kharagpur team to probe
NHAI has removed the construction agency’s project manager Vivek Kumar Gupta, Independent Engineer team leader Surendra Kumar and resident engineer Yatendra Kumar from the project. The three have also been debarred from projects undertaken by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, NHAI and NHIDCL for a period of two years.
The authority has also repatriated the current project director, Nakul Prakash Verma, to his parent department and said charge sheets are being issued against him and former project director Saurabh Chaurasia for alleged negligence.
Further, NHAI has proposed to debar Theme Engineering Services Pvt Ltd, the project’s independent engineer, from participating in future NHAI projects.
As part of the corrective measures, the authority will carry out a laser profilometer-based assessment of the pavement condition across the entire expressway. It has also constituted an expert team led by Professor K S Reddy of IIT Kharagpur to investigate the reasons behind the pavement slippage and recommend remedial measures.
“NHAI remains committed to maintaining the highest standards of quality, safety and accountability in the development and maintenance of National Highway infrastructure,” the statement said.