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Team of experts from US, Canada inspects Polavaram project
A panel of US and Canadian experts inspected the Polavaram irrigation project to assess progress and ensure quality, safety, and timely execution.
A panel of international experts from the US and Canada on Monday conducted an on-site inspection of the Polavaram major irrigation project on Godavari River to study the progress of ongoing works on the project, which is being conducted with 100% central funding, officials familiar with the matter said.
The experts’ team comprising David B Paul and Gias Franco de Cisco (both from USA) and Seas Hinsberger (from Canada) arrived at the project site in the morning.
The experts reviewed the progress of major components such as gap-1 and gap-2 of the dam works, upstream and downstream portions of the main dam, the diaphragm wall, dewatering channel, rock fill zones and clay stockpiles. “They also reviewed sand reach, construction materials, and ECRF dam plans, along with spill channel and approach channel works,” an irrigation department official said.
The team was accompanied by officials from various wings of the Central Water Commission including Sarabjit Singh Bakshi, Manish Rathore, Gaurav Tiwari and Hemant Gautam, Polavaram Project Authority member-secretary M Raghuram, director K Shankar and National Institute of Rock Mechanics director Ajay Kumar Naitani.
Engineer-in-chief of water resources department K Narasimha Murthy, chief engineer K Ramachandra Rao, Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd general manager A Gangadhar and deputy general manager Murali Pammi explained to the team the progress of works on the Polavaram project.
Government advisor A Venkateswara Rao, along with senior engineering officials and representatives of MEIL, briefed the team on the status of works.
The foreign experts’ team will continue the inspections till January 22 and assess the progress, examine critical components, and provide advisory inputs to ensure quality, safety, and timely execution.
On January 22, the experts will meet the chief engineer at Rajamahendravaram, followed by discussions in New Delhi with the CEO of the Polavaram Project Authority and Union water resources ministry officials before returning on January 24.
