New Delhi: Three months after it was
unveiled with great pomp, several parts of the city`s tallest
building -- MCD`s Civic Centre -- were today seen waterlogged,
with officials looking for ways to tackle the impact of rains.
During an inspection tour by Leader of Opposition in MCD
Jai Kishan Sharma along with other Congress councillors and
media, it was seen that the parts of the ground floor and
basement of the 28-storeyed, 112-metre building, constructed
at a cost of Rs 650 crore, were under water.
Claiming that "below standard" construction work was
responsible for the situation, Sharma demanded a CBI probe
into the matter as well as blacklisting and stoppage of
payment to the Malaysian contractor engaged in the project.
Following overnight rains, seepage of water through wall
and pipes was also seen in some blocks, while large amount of
water gushed through the roof of the portico.
Project officials and engineers, however, said the
problems occurred as the building, which was inaugurated by
Home Minister P Chidambaram on April 22, is still under
construction and all these glitches will be rectified shortly.
"We have a rainwater harvesting well and pumping
stations. However, the outfall of water should be through
drains surrounding the building, which are still being
constructed. Due to this, there was some accumulation of
water," Chief Project Manager Sunil Tyagi told reporters.
"In the upper floors, water was coming through the
expansion joint (the gap between floor decks for withholding
weather or seismic impact), the work of covering of which is
under process. We are identifying other problems being faced
due to the rains and will rectify them," he said.
Sharma, was however, clearly unimpressed.
"They have spent Rs 650 crore for the building and now
there is water everywhere. There are cracks in some walls. The
contractor should have taken precautions keeping the rainy
season in mind. We want a CBI probe to identify who is
responsible for waste of taxpayers` money. We demand that the
agency be blacklisted and payment stopped," he told the media.
He said if the supervising MCD officials did not do their
job properly, there should be action against them too.
"The ruling BJP had inaugurated the building and had said
the offices of MCD will be shifted in 10-15 days. I feel the
work will not be over this year. The corporation has also
harmed the image of leaders like Chidambaram, L K Advani,
Sushma Swaraj and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, who had come
for inauguration, by this fiasco," he said.
Tyagi also felt that all work will be over only in three
to four months. When his reaction was sought, Mayor P R
Sawhney said "We will take the necessary steps to resolve the
problems, if any."
PTI
