The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, has agreed to review and offer suggestions to the recently built 375-metre-long ‘rapid road’, along Old Madras road, near Indiranagar.
The IISc has charged Rs 23.41 lakh as the consultancy fee that requires three months time to complete. A third-party review was sought after multiple cracks appeared on the road, raising questions over the life of the project.
“The IISc will be happy to undertake the above work as a consultancy project on the terms and conditions,” Centre for Scientific and Industrial Consultancy, which acts as a bridge between industry and academia, said in a letter to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike.
The IISc has deputed Prof P Anbazhagan and Prof Chandra Kishan of the civil engineering department.
One of the conditions states that the IISc will start the work only after the receipt of funds. “The IISc consultant will evaluate the models and provide only advisory-related support under this project as per the scope of work,” states the letter dated January 5.
The scope of work includes: Checking of soil and subsurface investigation report, in-situ testing and measurement of subgrade and sub-base, suggestions to improve rapid road, review of the precast panels, the tongue and grooved joints etc., concrete durability, load transfer at joints, panel support conditions and efficiency etc.
To be funded by the technology provider
The rapid road technology was introduced as a part of the research and development (R&D) programme of UltraTech Cement Ltd. “The pilot project on Old Madras road was partially funded by the private firm as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative. We will ask the private firm to bear the full consultancy charges,” B S Prahlad, engineer-in-chief at BBMP, said.
He insisted that the rapid road was not an alternative to white-topping of roads. “The rapid road technology, based on the suggestions from the IISc, can be used on roads that are located in commercial areas. This will help in reducing the construction time and traffic disruptions," Prahlad added.