Indore (Madhya Pradesh): In a move aimed at improving the quality of patchwork and asphalt resurfacing of city roads, Indore Municipal Corporation will now deploy its engineers directly at the plants of contracted agencies to carry out on-site quality checks of road construction materials before they are sent to project sites.
Municipal commissioner Dilip Kumar Yadav, during an early morning inspection on Sunday, visited Jai Bajrang Stone Crusher Bitumen Plant located near Dhuneri village on Depalpur Road. He was accompanied by additional commissioners Rohit Sisonia, Arth Jain, Abhay Rajnangavkar and other departmental officials.
During the inspection, Yadav instructed that hot-mix materials used in patchwork and asphalting must undergo strict quality checks at the plant itself. Only materials that meet quality standards should be transported for use in road repairs. To ensure better quality of patchwork and asphalting, it's essential that the material dispatched from the plant is of the highest standard, he stated.
He said that monitoring quality at the plant can ensure over 80 per cent of the desired quality in road works. The commissioner ordered the deployment of municipal engineers at all such plants to ensure continuous quality verification.
Yadav also issued directives to ensure that raw materials used in road works, particularly the bitumen and stone chips (churi), contain minimal dust and adhere to temperature and material specifications. He instructed that sieving equipment be used to eliminate excess dust and that only high-quality gravel be used. He also directed that these parameters be included as conditions in upcoming tenders.
Later, the commissioner visited another plant operated by Anant Agrawal of Jai Bajrang Stone Crusher, located near Rangwasa village. Upon checking the quality of stone chips, it was found that the sample collected from the site did not meet the required standards.
The commissioner ordered penalty proceedings against the agency if poor quality was confirmed upon testing. Besides, he instructed that the substandard raw material not be used in any patchwork or asphalting works.
