Strength of 348 dams suspect as no checks in 10 yrs: CAG





Budget Overshoots Estimates By Nearly Rs 70,000Cr

A Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report has found the structural strength of 348 large dams suspect as they have not been inspected for over a decade. This is despite the fact that the government spent Rs 70,000 crore more than the estimates, the report added.

Good rainfall for even a few weeks can flood huge tracts of land because of dam bursts, following years of delay in completing important projects and charges of corruption. In five dams, seepage and leakage noticed during an inspection in 2007 increased from 3% to 130% in 2012. "The high pendency of inspection notes and reply of officials indicates that field construction offices did not give due importance to quality control during construction of dams," the report said, point

ing out that 42% construction divisions failed to furnish construction programmes to prepare for quality tests.

Cross drains were blocked in 2007, and by 2011, they were found to be "de-shaped" at Manjara dam in Osmanabad district. The earthwork at Mun dam in Buldhana district got washed away as rectification of the right and left bunds, required in 2007, was not done. The CAG pointed out that the Dam Safety Organization did not follow criteria for selection of dams for periodic inspections. The compliance to deficiencies pointed out in health status reports of dams ranged from less than 1% to 43.81% in 2007-12.

Quality control circle officers inspect dam construction sites and issue 'red inspection slips' in case serious deficien

cies are noticed. "Work is not supposed to resume unless the deficiencies are rectified. But execution of 30 out of 81 dam projects, wherein slips were issued, continued. Even compliance to inspection notes of the quality control organization on construction work was poor. Of 5,991 inspection notes issued in 2009-13, 45% (or 2,411) were pending for reply and compliance," the report revealed.