Thiruvananthapuram: Contractors will now be blacklisted for a year if potholes appear on black spots of the road during the defect liability period. The state government has included a new clause to enforce this condition in the Kerala PWD manual following the instruction of the Chairman of the Supreme Court committee on Road safety.
The Principal Secretary, Transport department has recommended to take necessary action to blacklist the responsible contractors for at least one year if potholes are formed in roads where black spots have been identified.
Black spots are short stretches where road accidents occur repeatedly due to various reasons, according to the Ministry of road transport and highways. Defect liability period defines the time frame following the completion of road construction during which the contractor shall be responsible for fixing any damages on the road.
Under normal circumstances, no potholes/ damages shall occur in the entire reach of the road work during the defect liability period, according to the order issued by the government. The new clause mandates that the black spots of the road as declared by the Road Safety Authority, shall be notified and included in the tender documents to enable the contractor to take extra care during execution of the works in such road reaches.
If potholes / damages are formed in the black spot reaches of the road due to the default of contractor, during the defect liability period, and in cases where the potholes/ damages are not rectified in time as per the direction of Engineer in charge, the Registering Authority may suspend Contractor's license for a period of one year, the clause says.
A contractor who is suspended/ removed from the approved list shall be barred from quoting for new works in any of the public works being implemented through Government Engineering Departments/Public Sector Undertakings, till license is restored. A fine which will be calculated at twice the expenses incurred for rectification shall be included for such defaults of the Contractor.
