In a bid to fast-track road construction and reduce pollution, the government has mandated use of factory manufactured pre-cast concrete items in the construction of the National Highway projects.
The minimum mandatory usage should be 25 per cent of total concrete volume, a Road Transport Ministry release said on Tuesday (19 April).
“To harness the benefits of pre-fabrication in construction of National Highways, expressways and other centrally sponsored road projects, the Ministry of Road Tranport and Highways (MORT&H) has made mandatory to use factory manufactured pre-cast concrete elements in projects within 100 km radius of Pre-cast factory,” the release said.
“The minimum mandatory usage should be 25 per cent of total concrete volume other than the foundations and sub-structures of Bridges/Viaduct/RoB,” it added.
“Industrialised Pre-cast Concrete has the benefits of all-weather and fast construction, reliable quality and enhanced performance durability, aesthetics due to uniformity in appearance and minimum user time delay/reduced carbon emission/reduced noise and air pollution due to reduced construction activities at site, etc,” the ministry said.
Further, it will also play an integral role in accelerating the growth of the MSME sector.
As per the release, the pre-cast factory will be certified by Quality Council of India (QCI)/NCCBM/RDSO/IITs and will have minimum facility of fully automatic RMC plant for better quality, arrangement for steam curing, mechanical handling of concrete and pre-cast components, bar bending machines, stacking yard, in-house design team and NABL accredited quality control laboratory, RO plant for water purification etc.