Tura MDC Marak writes to CM Sangma, demands Central inquiry into PA Sangma Stadium wall collapse

He said that it has been found that the back filling was done by red and clay soil which was not recommended by experts

Bernard N Marak, Member of District Council (MDC) of Garo Hills Autonomous District Council from Tura and Vice President of Meghalaya BJP has in a letter to Chief Minister Conrad Sangma highlighted that wrong construction material was used for building the retaining wall of the football stadium in the PA Sangma Sports Complex in Tura that collapsed on June 22 during incessant rain.

Marak also alleged lack of sincerity in trying to get to the truth about what caused the wall collapse, demanded immediate arrest of the contractor and a Central level independent inquiry into the incident.

A retaining wall collapsed had raised concerns and questions about the construction quality, quality of material used and about the credibility of the contractor. The retaining wall had collapsed within six months of the football stadium being inaugurated in December last year.

In the letter, Marak said that instead of using sand, dust and gravel, back filling was done with the wrong material, which was the main cause of the collapse. He said that it has been found that the back filling was done with red and clay soil which was not recommendable by the experts.

“Red and clay soil should not have been used to fill in the first place as water accumulates and exerts pressure on the wall. The weep hole on the wall was blocked because of the red soil. Stone, sand, dust and other materials should have been used to fill the backside of the wall but on closer observation, it can be seen that wrong materials was used instead or sand, dust and gravel which caused the wall to collapse,” Marak said in the letter.

Marak requested CM Sangma to instruct the concerned people to remove the red soil from the walls and fill it with dust, sand and gravel and to construct a shade above the galleries as the water from the galleries poured down directly to the side walls of the ground and the pressure caused the wall to collapse.

He also said that the drainage is not proper as the outlets in the collapsed wall had 4″ PVC pipes which directly poured out to the Diringga road.

The Tura MDC said that the wall did not slide rather it failed to hold the weight of the water and the clay which cracked and collapsed.

Pointing out that the Chief Minister himself had acknowledged that there was a mud slip that led to the wall to collapse, Marak asked where did the mud come from? Who was the engineer and the contractor who did the filling?

Alleging lack of sincerity to bring out the truth of the matter, Bernard Marak said that the police did not even ask for the Daily Progress Report (DPR) of the project, nor tried to call the company people who should have been behind bars right now.

Bernard Marak further urged CM Sangma to stop being so defensive over the shoddy work done at the Stadium and instead let a high-level independent inquiry committee from the Centre conduct a proper investigation.

Marak requested CM Sangma to show some sincere respect to late Purno A Sangma’s landmark project being built at an estimated cost of Rs 128 crore and book the contractor immediately who has done such shoddy work.

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