The construction of the diaphragm wall, which is the most crucial part of the Polavaram project, has faced a setback at the very beginning. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu proposed to begin this work from the new year on Thursday. But he was forced to postpone as the Central Water Commission has not yet given the green signal for the commencement of the work.
This is due to the lack of approval from foreign experts. German contracting company Bauer has prepared the necessary machinery and experienced engineering personnel for the construction of the wall. It has been decided in advance to start the construction work from January 2 and complete it by November.
CM Chandrababu Naidu also said that he will attend the event. But the Central Water Commission has made it clear that the team consisting of foreign experts on the plastic concrete mixture, which plays a key role in the construction of the wall, David Brian Paul, Gian Franco Di Cicco (USA), Sean Hinchberger, and Charles Richard Donnelly (Canada), must get approval.
The Water Resources Department has already prepared samples of four plastic concrete mixtures and sent them to experts. Those who were supposed to examine them are currently on Christmas celebrations. Despite all the efforts of the Water Board, PPA and the Water Resources Department, there has been no response from them.
With this, the diaphragm wall construction work, which was supposed to start from Thursday, has been postponed. If the experts become available, they will be consulted through a video conference between January 7-10 and a decision will be taken on the concrete mixture, according to the Water Resources Department sources.
In this context, the wall construction work is likely to start from the third week of this month. The Central Water Board is saying that the diaphragm wall plastic concrete mixture should be approved by foreign experts. However, sources in the Central Water Resources Department say that they too have no experience with this mixture.
Engineering sources say that only the contracting company Bauer has special experience in this matter. However, objections are being expressed against the Water Board’s order to start the work only after obtaining the approval of foreign experts.