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ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK FUNDED WORKS
FOR MYSORE CITY
21 January 1999
Held at the Institution of Engineers (India), Mysore Local Centre, Mysore.
SPONSORS
Mysore Grahakara Parishat, Mysore. [MGP]
Mysore City Corporation, Mysore. [MCC]
Mysore Local Centre of the Institution of Engineers (India), Mysore. [IE(I)]
SUPPORT
Corporate Citizenship Panel of the Confederation of Indian Industries, Mysore. [CII]
GENERAL
The One-day Workshop conducted from 10 A.M. to 5 P.M. was well attended, over 250 people having registered. The Workshop was organized at the initiative of MGP, which also performed the co-ordination and technical functions, and provided volunteers for duties during the Workshop. MCC helped generously at all stages of the organization and the conduct of the Workshop. IE(I) came forward with the use of the S.P.Bhat Hall in their premises and infrastructural support. The CII supported the Workshop with their generous gesture of bearing the entire cost of the hospitality by way of lunch and tea/coffee for all participants.
There were four Sessions and a Concluding Session. Each Speaker was allotted a time of 20 minutes to present the subject of the Session, and 45 minutes were set aside in each Session for participant interaction. This time schedule was well adhered to by all the Speakers, and the floor discussions and points were very pertinent and useful. There was lively and cordial interaction in every Session.
The more important questions / suggestions of each Session are highlighted in the report on each Session. The proceedings of the Workshop are summarized in this document in three parts for each Session, viz., Summary of the Talk by the Speaker, Questions / Suggestions / Statements from Participants, and Response by the Speaker to the Questions.
INAUGURAL SESSION
The Chief Guest was the Mayor of the City of Mysore, Sri Arif Hussain, and the Divisional Commissioner, Sri Raju G. Prem Kumar presided. Sri K.N.Subba Rao, Chairman of the Mysore Local Centre of the Institution of Engineers (India) welcomed the participants.
SESSION I – FINANCE & OVERVIEW
Chairperson : Smt. Andal Siddharthacharry. Reporter : Smt. Shreemathi Hariprasad
Speaker : Dr. P. Boregowda, Commissioner, Mysore City Corporation..
Summary of the Talk
The projects planned under ADB funded works are based on projections for the periods 1996-2011 and 2012-2026, for which the estimated population is 11 lakhs and 17 lakhs respectively. The amount covers the following work : Roads, Water supply, Sewerage, Surface drains, Solid waste management, Bus terminal, Truck terminus, Public latrines, Residential sites and services, Slum improvement, and Low-cost sanitation.
The flow of funds is from ADB through Government of India (GoI), Government of Karnataka (GoK), and Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation (KUIDFC), and to the Implementing Agency (IA) i.e., MCC/ MUDA/ KUWS&DB, etc.
The total loan amount is Rs.124.65 crores and the grant amount is Rs.17.11 crores. A grand total of Rs.141.76 crores. The rate of interest is 12 %, and the amount is payable over a period of 25 years, with an initial 5 years moratorium. While GoI has a burden of 2%, GoK has to bear the rate of 12% interest.
The IA does not draw the money directly. The work is completed, and the expenditure is then claimed based on the bills.
The rules and ethos of work in the IAs is quite dissimilar to those which are expected for the works being executed with ADB funds.
Prequalification of contractors is based on their financial capacity (40% weightage), technical capacity (20% weightage), and experience (40% weightage). So far the 169 applications received have resulted in 59 being eligible to receive tenders.
The consultant firm appointed for Mysore by ADB (KUIDFC) is M/s Dalal Consultants. They prepare the bid documents, which are approved by the Steering Committee (which has been delegated powers by the Cabinet so as to save time) before work is awarded to the Contractors.
The loan amount may exceed Rs.124.65 crores, as there may be other projects worthy of implementation. We may consider the following options for bearing such a heavy loan :
# Guarantees of GoI and/or GoK.
# Revision of property tax after rationalization.
# Revision of water charges.
The entire work has to be completed by January 2000. Hence the implementation is to be broken into monthly segments for monitoring. There is a clause in the contracts, which makes either the contractor or the IA liable to pay penalty for delay in completion.
M/s Dalal Consultants are responsible for maintenance of quality standards and to oversee the work of the IAs. Third Party Inspection is a part of the process.
of certification.
The citizens of Mysore were requested to co-operate in the ADB funded works.
Questions / Suggestions / Statements from the Participants
# How do we bear the burden of the loan? That is, how do we repay the loan?
# What has been planned for generation of the money for repayment?
# What evaluation process is on the anvil?
# Without consulting the public of Mysore, the GoK has thrown a burden of paying back
Rs.125 crores plus interest at the rate of 12% in 25 years upon the public.
# What sustainable measures are planned for maintenance of the infrastructure
developed?
# Apart from possible upward revision of taxes, it would be wise to collect the arrears of taxes
on priority basis.
# How is the proper utilization of the money monitored?
# RBI has fixed interest rate at 10.5%. Why are we paying 12% for this loan?
# Why not levy some charges on the floating population of Mysore?
# Are there plans to allow the public to monitor the progress of the works?
# Apart from M/s Dalal, why not constitute an independent committee of experts to oversee
the work?
# Transparency in working is necessary. Specifications and other checks during progress of
work should be available to the public.
# Details of the feasibility studies that have been conducted should be made available.
# Who should be contacted when the need arises to report or suggest something about the
work?
# The interest alone @ 12% on Rs.125 crores payable every year far exceeds the annual
income of MCC. This is apart from the annual installments of the loan principal that we
will have to pay. It appears that we are in a very serious and difficult position.
Response from the Speaker
The magnitude of the present loan is certainly of alarming proportions. It is also not fair that we have to bear a 12% interest burden while Government pays only 2%. The repayment of the loan is sure to be a difficult process. It may even worsen the foreign resource crunch. It is true that repayment should be given the most serious attention as it is of the gravest concern.
The primary interest rate of ADB is alright. GoI has converted some of this into grants. If we had truly done proper maintenance of the existing infrastructural assets, perhaps we would not have had to incur such a heavy loan. Had we overcome our sense of apathy and reviewed the whole situation in time, we would have been in a much better position. However, having now entered into this “mega-job” we should go all out to implement it and maintain the standards.
Income generation may be by the following means viz., sale of compost from solid waste disposal, raising water charges, rationalization of property tax. Other viable means need to be considered seriously.
Based upon suggestions from the public, some modifications have been made in the on-going works. Further suggestions may be given to the IAs. Deviation of upto 10% of the cost is permitted according to the rules. Deviation of more than 10% will have to be approved by the Steering Committee. Legislators may kindly use their good offices in the right quarters to mitigate the pressure of the huge loan.
The enormity of the effects of the loan has still not been worked out as it could totally stall the beginning of the work itself. Hence more such workshops or seminars may be conducted in order to debate the issues and arrive at workable solutions.
SESSION II – ROADS
Chairperson : Sri H.R.Bapu Sathyanarayana Reporter : Maj Gen S.G.Vombatkere (Retd)
Speakers : Sri Chikkananjaiah, Member Town Planning, MUDA.
Sri H.R.Nagaraj, Supdt Engineer, MCC.
Summary of the Talk
MUDA. The outer ring road (ORR) is planned for encircling Mysore, but the portion being constructed under ADB works is only around the Western sector and is of 23.2km length. The right of way (ROW) is 45 metres and land acquisition is 250 acres. There are 4 places at which the ORR crosses railway lines. The Indian Railways will construct the bridges at these sites as deposit works.
Questions / Suggestions / Statements from the Participants
The questions and suggestions from the participants were too numerous to list out. The major areas of the participants’ concern were :
# Planning and Specifications. It appears that the selection of city roads for improvement has been done without regard to overall planning in terms of forecast of traffic type, density and routing.
The specifications for upgrading (especially the 48 City roads) are poor, and thus the life of the work will not be as much as expected. When funds were insufficient, a lesser length of roads should have been selected for improvement to better technical specifications so as obtain better value for money.
Many roads are being provided with kerbstones, which results in the road effectively becoming a drain for flow of rainwater. This is especially as camber is not controlled and also there are no side drains in these stretches. Even if diagonal cross drains are provided, the bituminous surface serves as the side drain near the kerb, and its life will be severely reduced. Furthermore, fixing of kerbstones as is being done, gives little scope for widening of the road at a later stage, if needed.
# Construction methods and Quality Control (QC) by site supervision. The quality of the work as observed on the ground so far (Kantharaj Urs Road and Contour Road) leave much to be desired. Even non-technical persons can see that the work is not being done well. Furthermore, the persons who are supposed to supervise were not aware of good engineering practice or were not exercising sufficient control over the contractor’s workmen to ensure that work is done as per the specifications (and these are poor as it is).
There is no system at site maintained by the Contractor to note down the details of the work as it progresses. For example, the temperature of the bituminous premixed material is to be measured before spreading, and the measured temperature is to be recorded in a site register (Works Diary). No such register (as an accountable document) is being maintained.
A template to check the camber of the finished road surface is another essential that was not found at the site.
Pegs to ensure correct spread and compacted thickness of road layers need to be fixed during work, but this has not been done.
The edges of the road pavement were not secured by brick on edge or at least by building up earth on the shoulders, and rolling of the edges of the road has resulted in reduction of thickness of the layer due to its crumbling away under the weight of the roller.
Boards need to be erected at the site of each work indicating the specifications of the work, and the name of the engineer who is supervising the work.
# Accountability of officials and engineers. When citizens intervened in the work on Kantharaj Urs Road, it required a great deal of effort to locate the officials / engineers who were responsible for site supervision and inspection. Many times they could not be found at the site, or if found and contacted, pleaded helplessness.
# Traffic control. During the progress of roadwork, arrangements were not made to divert / re-route / control traffic. Apart from inconvenience to the public, this also adversely affects the quality of the work. Liaison with the Police authorities and adequate sign posting are essential in this regard.
# Quality Assurance (QA) by post construction inspection. When work is being done, not only must QC be assured, but there has to be a system for QA by means of post-construction inspection of work by an independent body. Lapses and failures of QC must be dealt with by de-valuation of the work or by getting the work re-done at the cost of the contractor. This is a part of Total Quality Management (TQM) which is essential in any works done to international standards.
# Environmental impact. The ORR crosses the Lingambudi Lake, dividing it into two. Long before the route was finalized, local NGOs had pointed out that a slight re-alignment of the ORR would save the lake from serious impact of the construction work as well as the use of the ORR. It is necessary to do this even at this stage so that an environmental asset of Mysore will not be lost forever.
# Public participation during construction and in monitoring and inspection. A body of experts from among the public should be appointed to monitor the progress of the work, and also inspect the work when done.
# Maintenance of the assets created with ADB funds. After the period for which the contractor is responsible for the performance of the roadwork, further normal maintenance of the roads is the responsibility of the MCC or MUDA, as the case may be. It has been brought out that maintenance funds for roads available from the Government are grossly inadequate. How will MCC or MUDA maintain the roads for which huge loan has been taken, without allowing them to deteriorate for want of funds to maintain them? Has this long term planning aspect been considered?
# ORR. How will encroachments into the 45-metre right of way (ROW) be prevented? Are the dimensions according to standards of the Indian Roads Congress (IRC)?
Response from the Speakers
The Speakers replied only to straight questions regarding specifications, construction methods, and QC at the work sites, and other matters were left unanswered due to shortage of time.
SESSION III – WATER SUPPLY AND SEWERAGE
Chairperson : Sri S.Subramanya Reporter : Sri U.N.Ravi Kumar
Speaker : Sri Vishwanathan, Supdt Engineer, KUWS&DB.
Summary of the Talk
(a) WATER. 10MGD water will be pumped from Melapura through a 6.3km long pipeline to a clarification tank at Ramanahalli, and a 5.7km pipeline will bring the clarified water to Mysore. The design is for 150 MLD, while the requirement for Mysore in 2011 will be 135 MLD. There are several packages in the works viz., pressure mains, distribution lines, purification facilities, quarters for staff, etc. There is provision for Third Party quality control of these works.
(b) UGD. The area of Mysore city has been divided into four drainage districts (originally there were five). The design is to cater for the load anticipated in 2011 and 2026. District ‘B’ is fully developed and estimated for 2026. Districts ‘A’ and ‘B’ together, and District ‘D’ separately, have been designed for 2011. The tender is being called for District ‘C’. The work consists of connecting all sources to sewer mains, laying sewer mains, and connecting them to sewage treatment plants (STPs). For convenience, economy and maintenance, flocculated aerated lagoons are the basis of sewage treatment. Aeration and polishing will be done before discharge of effluent.
Questions / Suggestions / Statements from the Participants
# Vijayanagar layout is more than 10 years old. It has been provided with sewers, but these lead
into a lake near Hinkal village, and sewage continues to be discharged into the lake which
surrounds a 11th Century temple. MUDA has done no planning for sewage disposal at least in
Vijayanagar. This has been shown on the ground to the MUDA Commissioner on 31 Dec 98
The MCC and MUDA need to give an assurance to the effect that after the ADB works for UGD are completed, all existing layouts would have been covered, and all
future layouts will have been catered for.
# The sewage from Vijayanagar is contaminating the ground water around Hinkal Village, as a
survey recently conducted has shown.
# Several overhead tanks (OHTs) are lying in a state of disuse. Will these now be put into
service?
# After augmentation of water to the city, will the supply position of water to the citizens
improve?
# Due to the city garbage being merely dumped on the road shoulders of Nanjangud Road, there is a foul odour. What is proposed to be done in this regard?
# Is it safe to grow vegetables with water from untreated sewage?
# There is likely to be a problem due to foul odour from the lagoons. Have alternate systems
been considered?
# In the execution of the works, co-ordination between the Departments involved is inadequate.
For example, the co-ordination for the pipeline being laid from VVWW to Dasappa Circle had
to be done by MGP. The Departments should do the co-ordination themselves.
# There are many UGD pipes that are very old and have small diameter. What is the plan for
replacing these? Can SWG pipes be replaced by PVC pipes?
# There is a great deal of water wasted due to leakage. Has water audit been done? What
are the proposals to stop these losses of water? Is water for industrial use separately
provided for?
# The adopted design for sewage treatment is not the best that can be done in the circumstances.
A re-consideration of the design is strongly suggested. What could have easily been done
locally has been done by foreign consultants and with a heavy loan. This is a matter of
shame.
# Why are three pumping stations being adopted? With single stage pumping, two storage tanks
could have been avoided and cost of tanks, cost of land, and employment of personnel could
have been saved.
# Wastewater from the treatment plants could have been diverted for industrial use. With the
present planning, there will be a serious odour problem, and open area will become a stinking
water body. Recovery of methane may be considered.
# Has Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) been carried out for these sewage treatment
plants? This is required to be done as per ADB Guidelines.
# Why has thought not been given to recharging of ground water from storm water flow
instead of leading the flow away into natural water courses?
# Drinking water is contaminated in Mysore city. Assurances of water quality given by the
authorities are hollow. There should be regular checking of water quality.
# There appears to be lack of an integrated approach in design of the water supply and
sewage systems.
Response from the Speaker
Wastewater recycling is possible technically. However this is not being done even in Bangalore. Tertiary treatment is required to remove Nitrogen and Phosphorous compounds, and this is expensive because there will be need for separate pipeline, tanks etc. if it is to be diverted for industrial use. Moreover the requirement and demand from industry will have to be considered.
The difference in cost between an activated sludge process and an aerated lagoon process is substantial, the former being 60-70% higher. It also has higher maintenance cost and higher power requirement. However, the requirement of land for a 50-MLD unit is about 12.5 Ha for the former and about 25 Ha for the latter. The design for the sewage treatment plants has been verified and approved by Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB).
The STP has a capacity for storage of sludge for 6 years, though it can be cleared even at more frequent intervals.
The MCC Commissioner clarified that the unused OHTs are part of the 8-MGD water augmentation project, and will be used when it is completed.
SESSION IV – SOLID WASTE, SURFACE DRAINS, BUS TERMINAL, PUBLIC LATRINES
Chairperson : Prof A.Ramalingam Reporter : Sri S.Thulaseedharan
Speaker : Dr.P.Boregowda, Commissioner, Mysore City Corporation.
Summary of the Talk
By the year 2010, MCC will have to handle about 622 tons of garbage per day. For this purpose, under ADB assisted programmes, a fleet of new vehicles is proposed to be acquired, consisting of 7 tippers, 6 dumpers, 9 tractors, 250 tricycles, and levellers. 30 garbage containers will also be acquired.
Some of these programmes will be operated under the Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) scheme.
Several Pay-and-Use Toilets are proposed for construction in the City centre and other thickly populated areas.
The construction of two Bus Terminals (one in the Regulated Market area and another in Doddakere Maidan) is proposed. These will be exclusively for private operators. This will ensure that private buses do not enter the City centre area.
A garbage handling plant with capacity of 200 tons per day is proposed for construction.
Questions / Suggestions / Statements from the Participants
# Have locations for dumping garbage been notified for public information?
# What arrangements are planned for disposal of hospital waste?
# It is necessary to ban the use of polythene bags in the City. Can this be done?
# Due to the problem with pourakarmikas, will not privatization of garbage handling be better?
# How to solve the problem of people defecating in the open all over the city areas?
Response from the Speaker
The locations for dumping garbage will be notified suitably.
Separate areas will be earmarked for disposal of hospital waste, where hospitals could jointly manage the incineration of the waste.
The matter of banning use of polythene bags will be examined.
Privatization of garbage handling was found economical only in areas where huge quantity of garbage is generated, for example in Devaraja Market area. In residential layouts where garbage is spread out, the situation is different.
Construction of public toilets may solve the problem of defecation in the open.
CONCLUDING SESSION
Speaker : Maj Gen S.G.Vombatkere (Retd), on behalf of I.E.(I), Mysore Local Centre.
# The variety and the type of questions and suggestions made by the participants bring out the genuine concerns of the people of Mysore. The MCC and MUDA have at last started the process of transparency, and told the people as to what is the size of the loan from ADB, what work is planned and being done, how it will be done, and how it is supposed to be done.
# There are shortcomings in the ADB funded works in Mysore. The four preceding Sessions have brought out the main shortcomings. The reasons for these are principally four.
First, poor planning of the entire scheme from the outset, i.e., from feasibility and financial viability even upto work identification and drawing up technical specifications. The planning was done without any real public participation. NGOs (MGP and MLSA) which asked to be included in a seminar organized by KUIDFC and conducted by TISS in May 1998 in the Administrative Training Institute, Mysore, were denied entry, and eventually the volunteers had to almost force their way in and participate in the seminar. All this, even though ADB has laid stress upon the need for public participation. Even now, public participation has not received official sanction, but is happening at least with respect to MCC works because of the sensitivity to public sentiment on the part of the Commissioner. Failure in planning is due to failure of GoK or Government agencies, in forcing a loan of Rs.125 crores on the citizens of Mysore without consulting them, and with no plans of how the loan will be repaid.
Second, poor supervision of the works. Quality of the works i.e., work being done according to the specifications, is important not only because the life of the work depends upon it, but also because the Contractors receive payment for the specified work. Poor supervision may be the result of ignorance, negligence or personal greed on the part of the supervisory staff. At any rate, the public gets a finished product (infrastructural development asset) which does not perform the designed duty adequately, and calls for additional financial resources to repair or maintain it. That is, there is loss of public money.
Third, there is no system of Quality Assurance (QA) through post-construction inspection of works in procedures of the GoK. A system of QA needs to be urgently introduced to compensate for lapses and shortfalls in Quality Control (QC). Work which found to be below specifications must be devalued if otherwise technically acceptable from performance criteria, or else got re-done at the risk and cost of the Contractor, with simultaneous administrative or disciplinary action against the supervisory and inspecting staff. This should be built into the tenders which are yet to be issued.
And fourth, corruption between the Contractor and any Government or quasi-Government staff at any level. There is no defined system of accountability of officials to the public when they are dealing with public funds in the performance of public functions. Nobody has as yet been punished for poor work, or loss of public funds or for corruption. Complaints of lesser work being done, work not done according to specifications, even grass growing on bitumen surfaced roads in days after completion, attract no comment from authorities, leave alone action against the erring engineers. This shows weakness or apathy at best and collusion or involvement at worst between the authorities, their engineering staff, and the Contractor(s). In order to take action against erring staff, no additional powers are required. The existing administrative and disciplinary powers are adequate to deal with any case – all it requires is that the authority concerned should have a clean record himself, and take the right initiative. There should be no objection from any public official (whether elected or appointed) to declare his personal assets, and public officials should investigate any assets disproportionate to the declared or known income of officials. This will help in checking corruption and getting value for public money.
# An appeal was made to the authorities to appreciate that the public was not interfering nor attempting to interfere in official functioning. Rather, since the public works (infrastructural works with ADB funds) are meant to be for the benefit of the public, officials should view public participation as an opportunity for doing good public service.
# The real reason for ADB funds being arranged for Mysore city is not because GoK felt that Mysore needed better infrastructure, but because an ADB funded study to relieve Bangalore of the pressures of thoughtless industrialization (and consequent population boom with all its attendant problems like general pollution, crime etc) found that Mysore was required to be a “counter-magnet”. This counter-magnet will eventually become like Bangalore inasmuch as the problems are concerned, unless the public of Mysore is alert and participate in the process of the growth of Mysore City.
# With regard to the huge loan and its repayment, MCC’s total income is of the order of Rs.2 crores per annum. At a very crude estimate, the annual outgo towards interest on Rs.125 crores @ 12% will be Rs.15 crores, and the principal will be about Rs.6 crores. That is, Mysore City will have to find Rs. 21 crores every year commencing 2004 for 20 years merely to service the debt, apart from other regular liabilities. It is abundantly clear that we can never raise this kind of money. The fact that the authorities have not even begun to talk in terms of finding means to raise revenues to meet this liability even part way, shows that the entire matter of getting a loan of this magnitude from ADB was for reasons other than the benefit of Mysore City. All Implementing Authorities (MCC, MUDA etc) should publish an Annual Statement of the Status of the ADB loan (Expenditures and Liabilities), commencing 31 March 1999, and also discuss with the public regarding the means of servicing the debt, before finalizing it with GoK.
# People’s participation. The elected representatives of the public of Mysore, viz., the Corporators, are often either not well informed about the implications and real issues involved in the ADB funded works, or else have not involved themselves in the matter. It is necessary for those of us who are now better informed as a result of this Workshop, to involve our Corporators so that they may carry out their functions and responsibilities in a more meaningful manner for the larger good of the City of Mysore.
The participants were requested to get the most out of the Workshop by discussing the issues raised in the Workshop with as many people as possible so that the larger body of the public becomes aware of the implications of the ADB funded works.
Today, we are very fortunate in Mysore City because most of the top public officials are approachable as well as sensitive to public needs and opinion. If the public is to participate in any meaningful way in the affairs of the City, this is the time to institutionalize public participation.
An appeal was made to MCC and MUDA to make periodic (quarterly) press releases regarding works (not only ADB funded works, but all others also) and other activities being planned as well as in progress, in the public interest.
Sensitivity of public officials to public sentiment is essential. As an example, the auction of 5 acres of land near the Race Course was mentioned. Some years ago, MUDA tried to auction the land, but had to drop the plan due to protest from the public. The lack of sensitivity of MUDA was shown when the same land was put up for auction in December 1998 despite repeated public protest, and the public had to go to a Court of Law in this connection. It is necessary for the public officials to realize and understand that they exist for the public, and their actions should be guided by public interest and needs.
# Poor performance. The public must not accept poor performance of public officials (whether elected or appointed), and not accept corrupt practices. Good work done by officials needs to be openly appreciated so as to give the concerned officials incentive to work well, and at the same time enthuse others to do better. We can expect and demand clean and honest work from public officials only if we ourselves are honest. If we are prepared to give bribes to get unauthorised work done for our personal benefit, then how can we expect public officials to be honest or efficient?
# Transparency and Accountability. The present Workshop has raised more questions than it has answered. This was to be expected considering the fact that the public was so far not at all involved by the Government in a matter as serious as a loan of Rs.125 crores @ 12%. It was suggested that the Implementing Authorities (IAs) hold more such “Meet the Public” events for continued transparency, and as a beginning in accountability to the public.
# Thanks. All persons and organizations concerned with the conduct of the Workshop were thanked.