MR Amin, Chittagong

Chittagong Halishahar WASA under construction project is allegedly using low-quality materials to crack walls. Some dishonest officials of WASA are trying to hide the misdeeds of Chittagong WASA officials.

Chittagong WASA has claimed the matter as false without taking any action to remedy the cause of the crack.

Some of the information discussed with experienced engineers in investigating the cause of cracks in the retaining walls of the project is as follows:

Talking to experienced engineers in construction related work, it is known that cracks can appear in the wall due to several reasons. One of them is the use of low-quality construction materials. Besides, Sylhet cents measuring 1.8 to 2.5 are good for welding or lining. If it is below this, the sand contains more clay and the structure will not be strong if used. Before using again, the sand should be sieved so that there is no soil.

If soil is present the casting may crack. In many cases, local market sands contain a mixture of salts, their use can cause blisters on the walls, which deteriorate quickly. In terms of mixing of materials, cement sand and stone 1:1.5:3 is standard. Some give up to 1:2:4. But if this mixture is mixed in 1:3:6 ratio then the installation will not be durable. Again 1/4 to 1/6 percent is standard in case of lining. If the amount of cement is less then cracks may occur.

If there are small cracks in the retaining wall, what kind of problem can be caused later, experienced engineers said, the cracks can grow slowly. Moreover, when one side of the wall is filled, the pressure on the other side will increase. As a result of this pressure, these cracks can eventually become larger and collapse. If the rods come into contact with water in any way through the cracks, the rods will swell and fall on the wall.

It is known that the sewerage project under construction in Halisahar area of the city at a cost of 3808 crores has a guarantee of 100 years after its construction. But recently some more information came out while investigating the crack in the wall. Those concerned said that although the main contractor of this project work was Taeng Engineering and Construction Company Limited of Korea, Nazmul Karim Chowdhury Sharun was looking after everything.

City Awami League leader Arshedul Alam Bachchu was in charge of some parts of goods delivery. Against whom there are several cases including robbery, vandalism and murder. They are also accused of taking extra money for the work in connivance with the project stakeholders. Another source said that these contractors paid a hefty commission to the engineers concerned. And as a result of this commission, no one dared to speak about the quality of work.

To know about these irregularities and the denial of his statement given this correspondent called , the project director Ariful Islam but did not get any response.

It should be noted that Chittagong WASA has undertaken a project to ensure sewage system for the metropolis by constructing sanitation facilities in order to maintain the modern lifestyle of the city dwellers.

56.5 percent of project work has been completed. Malaysia-based consulting firm Erinko is implementing the project. A Korean company will build the refinery and two Chinese companies will build the pipeline. A proposal to increase the project cost by Tk 1000 crore was sent to the ministry but it was not approved.

For the implementation of Halishahar Catchment-1, an expenditure of 3 thousand 808 crores has been fixed on an area of 163 acres. Japan, Korea, France and JICA will finance the implementation of sewage projects in the rest of the catchment area.

Feasibility study of catchment area-1 is in progress.

In this regard, Central Vice President of Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) and Chairman of Chittagong Divisional Committee SM Najer Hoshain said that since cracks were seen in the wall, the project concerned should have found out the cause of the cracks. But instead of doing that, they are eyeballing the journalist.