R ARIVANANTHAM
CHENNAI, AUG 5
Chennai-based Indian Road Survey & Management (IRSM) has partnered with the Australian Road Research Board (ARRB) to assess the network level road condition assessment, said IRSM Managing Director Parasuraman on Friday.
Addressing reporters on the sidelines of the IRSM seminar, he said that that the company pioneering in providing comprehensive topographical surveys, including road condition surveys of sealed and unsealed roads. The company has so far completed the network level road condition assessment of about 500K-Km.
- Laser-guided state-of-the-art Australian tech vehicles deployed for the survey, says IRSM MD Parasuraman
- Though the quality of roads in India is improving, we are still 3 decades behind other advanced economies, when it comes to road infrastructure
Reply to a query, Parasuraman said that the Australian partner investing in 50 percent of the equity of IRSM to further boost the scientific assessment of road conditions and assets. The Australian partner would share the technology as well as knowledge sharing about the ongoing survey, he added.
Some of the large projects undertaken by IRSM are in AP, Telangana and presently a prestigious project of TNRSP (Tamil Nadu Road Sector Project) is underway under the World Bank funding. IRSM till date has completed data collection and road assessments in 26 states.
Parasuraman, said, “The TNRSP project is an important project for us. We have now bid and have been shortlisted for similar projects in two other major States to the tune of 30,000 kms. Though the quality of roads in India is improving, we are still 3 decades behind other advanced economies, when it comes to road infrastructure.
IRSM is also the first in India to have taken up and conducted the survey under the International Road Assessment Program (IRAP) on road safety. Thus far, IRSM have done more than 10 such surveys pan India and abroad. Ten IRSM Engineers have IRAP accreditation.
IRSM is in joint venture with the 62-year-old Australian Road Research Board (ARRB). They also work closely with the Australian Trade and Investment commission (Austrade), in India.
“The technology is still in a nascent stage of adoption in India though we have been offering this service since 2009. The Ministry of Road Transport, NHAI and other Research Institutions are very supportive of the new technologies. We have three Network Survey Vehicle machines for functional and three machines for structural evaluation of the road condition,” he added.
To maintain and sustain the road assets, which are the lifeline of the Indian Economy, road assets built are consistently monitored and maintained through a scientific methodology thereby significantly minimizing the maintenance cost.
“This scientific approach, according to our observation and experience, can save to the extent of 25% of the maintenance cost of the asset through its life span. The NHAI, under the Ministry of Roadways, has made it mandatory to perform the functional and structural condition assessment every 6 months or one year interval,” Parasuraman pointed out.
Utilizing this opportunity, IRSM and ARRB have showcased the Network Survey Vehicle (NSV) and Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) from Australia to the representatives of the State Government, Road Developers, Engineers, Financiers, and Consultants at the seminar.
Dr Richard Yeo COO and Mark Steidle, CCO from ARRB and Abdul Ekram, Trade Commissioner, South India, South Asia Infrastructure and Kamran Khan Director, South Asia Infrastructure, Austrade were also present at the media conference.
