“CIVIL ENGINEERING – THE MOTHER DISCIPLINE”

"REFORMS IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY - AN OVERVIEW"

VIS-À-VIS

"TOTAL INDUSTRIALIZATION OF CIVIL ENGINEERING"

By:

B.G. Shirke
Chairman
B.G. Shirke Construction Technology Pvt. Ltd.
72-76, Mundhwa,
PUNE – 411 036

As I take a look back on my career, spanning over seventy years, I cannot but be

fully satisfied with what I feel I achieved during this long innings. During this period, my

entire work revolved around one firm belief and objective - "Total Industrialization of

Civil Engineering" - which has the sure capacity and potential to tackle the enormously

nagging problems in this basic Mother Discipline on which more than 51% of the

country’s Gross National Product (GNP) is spent every year and almost half of the money

out of this is being wasted due to primitive outdated operation of civil engineering to the

greatest detriment of the country, countrymen and progress of science and technology in

this basic Mother Discipline. Therefore, unless this colossal waste is stopped forthwith,

the future of our great ancient country is very bleak.

Total Industrialization of Civil Engineering

The late Bharatratna Sir M. Vishweshwarayya was a renowned Indian engineer,

administrator, technocrat, entrepreneur and reformist, who laid the foundations of Indian
Industry long before India's independence. Sir MV took voluntary retirement in 1908 as
 2

the Superintending Engineer of the then Bombay Government, because he was given very
discriminatory treatment as he was not made the Chief Engineer though he was entitled
and due for the said post. This is so because the rule in the British Regime was that the
Heads of all Departments should be the British. Due to this discriminatory treatment, he
resigned from his service and became the Chief Engineer of the then native State of
Mysore. When the case went to the then Governor of the Bombay State, he wrote to Sir
MV to come back, stating that he would be appointed as the Chief Engineer on which Sir
MV replied to the Governor that, “I do not re-serve the Government that discriminates.”
Then while working as the Chief Engineer of the then native State of Mysore around 1910,
he earnestly advocated that civil engineering in its building structures discipline must be
brought under scientific objective quality audit, as done in other industries/disciplines.
This is only possible by “Total Industrialization of Civil Engineering”. Sir MV was
born on 28th August 1861 and his birthday is celebrated all over India as “Engineers’ Day”
on 15th September every year.

Having taken inspiration from this great doyen of civil engineering, I have fulfilled
the wishes of Bharatratna Sir M. Vishweshwarayya by achieving my life's mission of
"Total Industrialization of Civil Engineering". However, in the process of achieving
this mission, I had to face enormous problems and fierce opposition of the mighty vested
interests i.e. mainly the Government technocrat authorities, who should have been the real
sponsors, protagonists and torchbearers of this urgently needed but inordinately delayed
"Techno-Economic-Social-Reform". In civil engineering, I have proved this
technological reform with Herculean efforts, unique unflinching dedication and supreme
self-sacrifice by constructing more than 2,00,000 dwelling units during the last 36 years,
both in India and overseas, in all types of climatic zones and rainfall areas, without a
single untoward incident so far. I feel happy and satisfied to pledge my unique
accomplished technological contribution of “Total Industrialization of Civil
Engineering” to late Bharatratna Sir M. Vishweshwarayya.
 3

Accomplishing this mission of “Total Industrialization of Civil Engineering”

meant change at a very basic level and, as is well known, the path of change is strife with
difficulties, often seemingly insurmountable. For me, this means fighting with the
established and outdated laws, systems and norms as well as fighting with the enormous
vested interests, wanting to perpetuate the past in order not to upset their apple carts and
thus protect the safe havens of unlimited corruption so rampant in this basic civil
engineering mother discipline. Ironically, a lot of opposition to this much needed change
came basically from the technocrat authorities themselves, who in fact, as stated earlier,
should have been at the forefront of sponsoring and propagating the proposals and
suggestions put forth by me.

Since the subject is extremely important from the national, social, technological,
legal, constitutional and educational considerations, I am highlighting below some of the
salient points:

Primitive operation of civil engineering works

Civil Engineering is the most important discipline in any country in the world and
very much so in India. This is so because every developmental activity in any discipline
essentially starts with some sort of basic civil engineering work. Hence, Civil Engineering
is rightly called as the "Mother Discipline".

Civil Engineering is the main instrument of all developmental activities. The real
economic and industrial development of our country started after independence through
the medium of five-year plans. Today, the country's total Gross National Product (GNP) is
more than Rs. 24 lacs crores as per the latest survey of the International Monetary Fund
(NANE-NIDHI). As per statistics, more than 50% of this amount, which is Rs. 12 lacs
crores, is spent on all types of civil engineering works.

Due to primitive operation of civil engineering, about 25% amount of the total
GNP, which is more than Rs. 6 lacs crores, is being wasted every year, with total
impunity, as per reports of the several committees appointed by the Government of India
 4

to find out the causative factors for this unlimited generation of black - unaccounted -
money required for consequent rampant safe corruption. The latest such committee,
appointed by the Government of India, was under the chairmanship of Dr. Raja Chelliah,
the famous economist from New Delhi, whose report has also confirmed the findings of
the previous committees appointed by the Government of India to find out the causative
factors of this SOCIAL CANCER. If this scandalously criminal and colossal waste is not
stopped forthwith, the moral, integrity and economic standards of our country as a whole
will be reduced to such a dangerously low level that ultimately it shall end up in the total
ruin of the country and countrymen.

It is pertinent to note that the Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG), in
his several annual audit reports submitted to the Parliament - Loksabha, has passed severe
strictures on this point. He has made castigating remarks, stating that the outdated
primitive operation of civil engineering is the main culprit for this social cancer of
rampant safe corruption, resulting in substandard works, inordinate delays and huge cost
overruns, including generation of unlimited black – unaccounted – money.

Non-introduction of new construction systems/latest developments

It is most unfortunate that we are still following the conventional outdated

tendering, contracting and subjective quality norms system drafted by the foreign rulers
more than 200 years ago for insignificantly small works, because the foreign rulers
naturally had no intentions to develop the country industrially and economically. Their
sole intentions were only to rule the country and exploit the same to the rulers’ maximum
benefits in all respects. So the civil engineering works required during the period of
foreign rule were for administrative purposes only, being minor in nature and hence
different, dissimilar, unequal and totally incomparable in all respects with the present-day
gigantic developmental projects started after independence.

Outdated Tendering System causing the biggest damage: The biggest damage,
being done by this conventional outdated tendering and subjective quality norms system,
 5

is that it has very effectively banned the introduction of new building materials and
construction systems and thus blocked the progress of science and technology in this basic
mother discipline to the greatest detriment of the country and the countrymen. Moreover,
these conventional outdated tendering methods, materials, subjective quality norms and
one-sided contracting systems have no capacity to touch even the fringe of the demand
and supply situation, inasmuch as they have totally outlived their both technical and
commercial usefulness. Therefore, this conventional outdated tendering system, based on
subjective quality norms stating that “The work must be done to the entire satisfaction of
the site supervising staff”, is enemy number one of the technology, country and
countrymen. I am glad to state that this anachronistic condition is now removed, but
implementation is still lagging.

Under this conventional outdated fraudulent and totally ruinous anti-national, anti-
social and anti-technology tendering, contracting and subjective so-called quality norms
system, the men on the sites in the hierarchy at the lowest level are normally the overseers,
who are invariably fresh and inexperienced. They have so many other works and
responsibilities also to perform simultaneously. So eventually they depend on their
Mistries and Daily-Waged Clerks. One can, therefore, imagine as to how half of the
country’s GNP is spent on the certification of these people, who supervise the works, as
they are armed with unilateral subjective summary vast and vague powers to accept or
reject the materials of construction and the work done; to write measurements, true or
false – generally false – which are hidden and underground and which thus cannot be
checked; to prepare bills and to certify the bills for payments worth thousands of crores of
rupees out of public funds by the very same people. Thus, in this one actor drama, in
reality, the same person, forming part of this gang, performs all the functions of the thief,
the police, the pleader, the judge and also the culprit. Therefore, is not it a mockery of
tendering and subjective quality norms system, being followed in the 21st Century in our
country!
 6

The responsibility of the highest paying authority, namely the Executive Engineer
in Civil and the Garrison Engineer in Military, is to check only 10% by value of the bill.
He does this by just counting the number of door/window frames and their shutters, the
value of which these days is much more than 15 to 20%, or checking some visible items
ticked by pencil by his subordinates and just ink them. Thus, his job is over. Can there be
more irresponsible, totally anti-national and worse method of squandering 51 to 55% of
the country’s GNP i.e. public funds than this? Hence, this is a perfectly safe fraud on the
public exchequer’s treasury, with total impunity, perpetrated due to the conventional
outdated tendering system based on subjective so-called quality norms under which
nobody is responsible and accountable for anything because the blames can be easily
shifted from one person to another. Therefore, if this disastrously ruinous outdated
tendering and contracting system, based on subjective so-called quality norms, which is
enemy number one of the technology, country and countrymen, is not stopped forthwith,
the future of our great ancient country is in jeopardy.

The public interest, therefore, essentially demands that this Civil Engineering
Mother Discipline should be operated scientifically, as per the latest developments and
scientific parameters, as then only the works shall be completed of the accredited quality
and within stipulated time, the rates shall also be the most realistic and reasonable and
hence the public good can also be ensured. If this is done, then most of the drawbacks,
lacunae and shortcomings, inherently involved in this totally ruinous outdated
conventional tendering, contracting and subjective quality norms system, will be
eliminated. This outdated illegal tendering, contracting and subjective quality norms
system is nothing but a safe loot of the public funds, with total impunity, perpetrated by
the mighty vested interests for their personal benefits at the cost of the technology, country
and countrymen.

We are now in the 21st Century and there are more than 3,000 engineering colleges
of all disciplines in partitioned India as against only 5 engineering colleges in pre-
independent India. Out of these five engineering colleges, two might have gone to
 7

Pakistan and three might have come to India. Therefore, there is no dearth now of any
number of competent technocrats of all disciplines in the country and hence naturally the
ideas and innovations of others in the field also have to be taken into consideration for the
good of all.

Here, I would like to emphasize that the Public Works Departments (PWDs) are
the main source of generating unlimited black money and consequent rampant safe
corruption to the greatest detriment of the country and countrymen by creating
substandard national assets. Hence, it is rightly described by the ex-PWD Secretary as
“Plunder Without Danger”. I have been repeatedly writing to the Government from
1979 till today that unless these PWDs are closed down, the future of our great ancient
country is very bleak. So these PWDs should be closed down now as they have become
totally anachronistic (i.e. chronologically out of place) and their existence is totally against
the public interest. In fact, these PWDs have become enemy number one of the country
and countrymen because they are mainly responsible for ruining the moral standards of
our country and countrymen. When the Government technocrat authorities, working in
PWDs, join these departments, they are excellent brains and that is why they are selected
in these departments on their merits of qualifying exams, but unfortunately without any
practical experience. This becomes the biggest disadvantage to the country, technology
and the technocrats themselves. Besides, they become helpless and cannot do anything in
PWDs because their hands, legs, mouths and brains are tied down due to the outdated
Government rules, regulations and procedures. So this creates a double loss to the country,
namely they are spending more on structures and they are thus creating national assets of
substandard quality, which require more time for construction, and are also getting less
carpet i.e. useable area in the same built-up area. Moreover, because of substandard works,
the life span of these structures is also very limited, involving huge maintenance costs.

During the inauguration ceremony of the National Institute of Advanced Studies in

Architecture at the University of Pune on 17th July 2005, Hon’ble Shri Sharadchandraji
Pawar, Minister for Agriculture & Food and Member-Planning Commission, Government
 8

of India, has rightly stated that, “Central Public Works Department (CPWD) and similar
departments at state and defence levels should be discontinued as the country now has
enough competent engineers, architects and contractors to do department works”.

While the proposal to close down these outdated PWDs is already under
consideration of the Government of India and the Planning Commission and though there
will be a report of the committee to close down these PWDs, still I am skeptical about its
actual implementation, as closing down PWDs has now become more difficult than in the
past due to mighty vested interests available in maintaining the disastrously ruinous
conventional subjective status quo. After closure of PWDs, I am quite confident that the
same type of work can be constructed of much better quality and in much less time and
cost.

Encouraging alternative construction systems

It is pertinent to note that the ever-progressive Government of Maharashtra's

Resolution of 10th November 1976, based on the recommendations of the committee
appointed under the convenorship of Shri RT Atre, the then Additional Chief Engineer of
Bombay Region, states that, "Tenders for residential buildings should be invited both
with conventional systems as well as alternative systems, using non-conventional
materials. Even if the alternate system may cost the same as conventional one, the
alternate system may be used."

The reason why alternative tenders should be invited is that the contractor can use
proven alternate modern building materials in lieu of the conventional materials. In case
the alternative tenders are not invited, the contractor cannot use such alternate even proven
and better materials, and the innovations of the path-finding innovators are thus directly
banned by the procedures. This, therefore, amounts to gagging the progress of science and
technology in this basic mother discipline. This procedural ban is thus worse than the legal
ban, being totally against the public interest, and also is fully protected by such outdated
Government procedures and practices.
 9

To improve this disastrously ruinous conventional outdated tendering, contracting

and subjective quality norms system, the ever-progressive Government of Maharashtra
had passed a unique and epoch-making Policy Resolution of 11.12.1984 to reserve
minimum 15 lac sq.ft. of Government works for such organisations, having a proven
prefab technology, and which give offers on alternative turnkey lumpsum basis and
execute works by the use of these proven scientific methods, systems and materials,
having BIS (ISI) norms and markings. This Policy Resolution dated 11.12.1984 was
challenged by the vested interests as many as 14 times and was thus heard 29 times in
different High Courts, their Appellate Courts and ultimately in the Supreme Court of
India; and all the 29 times, these highest judicial authorities have repeatedly vouched this
Government Policy Resolution as in the best public interest, being fully protected under
our Constitution Article 31-C as “CLASSIFIED”, meaning that no one, including even
the Courts, can interfere in such classified policies, except in the case of their non-
implementation.

Therefore, the conventional outdated tenders are not legal tenders, being totally
against the public interest, as compared with the tenders or offers received from those
under the New Category, which is created by the Government of Maharashtra under its
consolidated Resolution dated 31.5.1999 as per the directives given by the Mumbai High
Court in its landmark judgment of 26.3.1998. Therefore, every tender, on which public
funds are spent, must be invited first on alternative turnkey lumpsum basis from those
entrepreneurs registered in the New Category on the basis of their having a proven prefab
technology. Execution of such works must be done by the use of tenderers' proven prefab
materials, having BIS (ISI) norms and markings and the companies having ISO 9000 or
similar accreditations.

It is also very important to note that the All-India Housing Ministers' and
Secretaries' Conference held at Srinagar on 21st and 22nd May 1987, convened by the
Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India, has unanimously passed the
following three resolutions:
 10

(1) To promote the use of low cost alternative new building materials at
the planning stage.

(2) To give a preferential treatment to the manufacturers of such new

building materials through lumpsum turnkey contracts at
comparable rates without following the normal tender procedures.

(3) To provide captive markets and financial support specially by

housing authorities for promoting setting up of building materials
manufacturing and distribution centres and industries.

This conclusively proves that the policy, followed by the Government of

Maharashtra as per the recommendations of the ATRE COMMITTEE in 1976, is already
fully accepted by the authorities of Central Government and all the States in the All-India
Srinagar Conference held in May 1987. Thus, it has already got national approval and is
declared as in the best public interest as many as 29 times, when challenged in different
High Courts, their Appellate Courts and also ultimately confirmed by the Supreme Court
of India.

Court Verdict – Removing the obsolete anti-progress practice of

accepting the tender based on the lowest price

The Supreme Court of India's landmark judgment (Civil Appeal No. 4892
of 1998 with C.A. No. 4893 of 1998), delivered on 9.12.1998 by Justice B.N.
Kirpal, who eventually became the Chief Justice of India, and Justice Mrs.
Sujata V. Manohar, in the case of Raunaq International Ltd. Vs. I.V.R.
Construction Ltd. and others, has also removed the obsolete anti-progress
practice of accepting the tender based on the lowest price. Paragraph No. 16 of
the said judgment states as under:
 11

Quote

"16. It is also necessary to remember that price may not always be the sole
criterion for awarding a contract. Often when an evaluation committee of experts is
appointed to evaluate offers, the expert committee's special knowledge plays a
decisive role in deciding which is the best offer. Price offered is only one of the
criteria. The past record of the tenderers, the quality of the goods or services which
are offered, assessing such quality on the basis of the past performance of the
tenderer, its market reputation and so on, all play an important role in deciding to
whom the contract should be awarded. At times, a higher price for a much better
quality of work can be legitimately paid in order to secure proper performance of the
contract and good quality of work - which is as much in public interest as a low
price. The Court should not substitute its own decision for the decision of an expert
evaluation committee."

Unquote

In other words, if the work is awarded only on the sole criterion of the LOWEST
PRICE, without giving any consideration to other important aspects as stated above, the
so-called LOWEST PRICE ultimately becomes the highest price with the longest
possible time of completion and the substandard quality of national assets thus created.
Hence, a committee of experts appointed should evaluate the real price by giving credits to
all these considerations and then the contract should be awarded as per the committee's
recommendations.

In this connection, I would like to quote below the words of wisdom pronounced
by Mr. John Ruskin, a great lecturer, writer and philosopher, on the "LOWEST
BIDDER".

Quote
 12

"It is unwise to pay too much, but it is worse to pay too little. When you pay too much,
you lose a little money - that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose
everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was
bought to do. The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting
a lot - it can'be be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something
for the risk you run. And if you do that, you will have enough to pay for something
better."

JOHN RUSKIN (1819 - 1900)

Unquote

Therefore, the conventional outdated tenders, mainly based on the so-called

LOWEST PRICE, are a blind bargain, like buying a pig in a poke, as nobody knows
what will come out of the Pandora's Box! Naturally, therefore, to compare the cost of
a non-existing product under this conventional outdated tendering system with an
existing factory-made prefab product under alternative turnkey lumpsum offer is
also illegal. Therefore, if alternative turnkey lumpsum tenders for works, on which
public funds are spent, are invited based on factory-made materials, having scientific
objective quality controls, then most of the drawbacks in this outdated tendering,
contracting and subjective quality norms system shall be removed; the unlimited safe
corruption shall also be under control; and thus India definitely shall be one of the
most economically and industrially developed countries in the world by the year
2020.

Ready Mix Concrete: The Way Ahead

It is shocking that concrete, which is the most versatile building material, is still
allowed to be done by the obviously wrong and unscientific method of volumetric
proportioning by the technocrat authorities even in the 21st Century particularly when
ample cement and all the required machinery are now available everywhere in the country
to do concrete by their pre-designed weights. In fact, to allow concrete to be done by
 13

volumetric proportioning is a national, social and technological crime and is the

fountainhead of all problems, arising from the rampant increasingly safe corruption in our
country.

Lot of cement can be saved due to these obviously clandestine activities of

allowing concrete to be done by this volumetric proportioning. This illegally and
unethically saved cement is many times adulterated and sold in black market in cash
through unrecorded transactions, and thus unlimited black - unaccounted - money required
for this safe rampant corruption is also generated. What is most alarming is that the
spurious traders, who buy this illegally and hence criminally saved stolen cement, make
two bags out of one by further adulteration and sell the same at a still lower price per bag
mainly in Mumbai and similar urban areas. Those, who do not know these dirty tricks of
the trade, buy it. Some buildings, constructed by the use of such adulterated cement,
collapse, taking toll of innocent human lives and also loss of property for no fault of theirs.
This has played havoc in our country.

One such example, amongst many, is the collapse of Govind Tower in Mumbai in
1998, taking toll of about 35 innocent people. In these 35 killed innocent habitants, there
were about 12 children below the age of fifteen. How can we deny that at least one or two
or even more of these children could have become great national leaders or eminent
scientists or expert doctors or innovative technocrats or renowned social workers! Such
losses are invaluable to the country!

Another example is of the recent earthquake in Gujrat. In this earthquake, as per

reports of the enquiry committee, the buildings recently constructed by the builders
collapsed, taking toll of thousands of innocent people, whereas at the same place, the
buildings constructed some decades ago stood firmly. This conclusively proves that the
earthquake did not kill the people, but the collapse of badly constructed buildings killed
the people. Any big city in declared earthquake prone zone is thus subject to this man-
made calamity.
 14

The eminent column-writer, Ms. Shobha De, has branded such engineers,
contractors and builders as “MURDERERS” in her Article, captioned “Years of living
dangerously”, appeared in the Pune Times of India as long back as on 8th August 1998.
The recent Gujrat earthquake is a conclusive proof of her statement.

Please imagine as to what would have happened if the flood of the collapsed
Panshet and Khadakwasla dams in July 1961 had inundated Pune at midnight instead of
early morning! More than half of the Puneites would have been washed away in their sleep
only, without knowing anything, for no fault of theirs!

Civil Engineering - the Mother Discipline - can thus be a boon or a curse to

the country and countrymen, as it all depends on how this basic Mother Discipline is
operated. If it is operated scientifically as per engineering principles and norms, then
it is a boon to the country and countrymen. However, if it is not operated
scientifically, then it can be a curse to the country and countrymen.

India needs minimum 5,000 Ready-Mixed Concrete (RMC) Plants, each of about
100 cubic meters per hour capacity starting from District level and ultimately at least one
at each Taluka-Tehsil. There are few RMC Plants in the whole country today as against
minimum 5,000 numbers required. However, due to the proper awakening and ample
availability of all raw materials, like cement and steel without any control, and the other
required machinery and components, the number of RMC Plants for selling the ready-
mixed concrete even to the smallest customers, as per their requirement, is slowly
increasing.

The turnover of these 5,000 RMC Plants may be about 55 to 60% of the total
money spent on civil engineering in the country both on public and private works. This
turnover can be in fact more than the combined turnover of all other public and private
sector industries put together. This is a very big amount. At the same time, by starting of
these RMC Plants at least one at each Taluka-Tehsil level of even a medium capacity, as a
rule, employment potential for several lacs of people can be generated and that too for the
 15

unskilled and needy workers; their skills can also be upgraded and the exodus from the
rural areas to the cities in search of employment shall also be arrested, besides helping to
solve the most nagging problem of housing and construction of all types with ensured
quality, super-fast speed and reasonable price. These are excellent benefits to the country
and countrymen. This one step alone shall give tremendous boost to Indian economy.

The use of Ready-Mixed Concrete (RMC) for construction of roads, bridges and
buildings has been made mandatory in Maharashtra for any large project, costing more
than Rs. 5 crores. In fact, RMC should be mandatorily used for each and every project
irrespective of its volume and cost.

This one step alone of doing concrete by its correct scientific method i.e. by weight
instead of volume has the sure potential to contain major problems of our country and
countrymen including the ills, evils, malpractices and rampant safe corruption.

The main objective of making RMC mandatory is to ensure high performance

concrete in terms of its perfect quality on account of right measured/balanced blending of
cement with other ingredients, like sand, metal, water and other binding and pest-
waterproofing materials. This is possible with entire mechanized, automated and
computerized process of preparing RMC in batching plants.

For major construction projects, RMC batching plants are not only inevitable but
also ideal as they ensure both quality as well as high speed of mixing. Besides, in major
projects, the application of RMC also proves cheaper as compared to conventional manual
blending since it reduces manpower, eliminates wastage/damage and ensures excellent
quality.

It is our firm conviction that in future concrete will be the only material of
construction. This is so because due to the versatility of concrete, any structure of any
type, size, shape, dimension and volume can be speedily constructed with ensured in-built
quality. Apart from building structures, infrastructure works, like roads, bridges, dams,
canals, irrigation projects, power projects, industrial projects etc., can all be constructed by
 16

concrete with excellent quality and super-fast speed. This process has already been started
in more advanced countries like America and Europe. Transformation of this process in
our country will be much faster when there are hundreds of Ready-Mixed Concrete Plants
all over the country. Since the technocrat authorities, mainly working in Government
Departments and their Corporations, are still controlling this national, social and
technological activity, this process can be achieved faster by their wholehearted and
willing cooperation, as it is everybody’s constitutional fundamental national duty.

Therefore, establishing Ready-Mixed Concrete Plants all over the country as early
as possible, starting with District places first and then spreading at least one at each
Taluka/Tehsil, each of about 100 cubic metre capacity per hour or as required, can solve
major problems of our great ancient country and countrymen. Hence, this activity shall be
a boon to the country and countrymen.

Concluding Remarks

Thus, both the Central and State Governments have taken several excellent steps
and measures, by passing most progressive Policy Resolutions, Directives and Orders, to
modernize civil engineering and bring it on an even keel with the world standards. All
these Government Classified Policy Resolutions have been repeatedly vouched as in the
best public interest as many as 14 times in different High Courts, 14 times in their
Appellate Courts and ultimately even confirmed the same by the Supreme Court of India
i.e. in all 29 times. However, it is most unfortunate that civil engineering technocrat
authorities, mainly working in Government Departments and their Corporations, including
Public Works Departments (PWDs), barring some honourable few exceptions, are not
implementing these Government Resolutions and Court Verdicts deliberately for the well-
known reasons, which could now involve serious and complex legal issues, such as
contempt proceedings. By implementation, it means that they have only to invite each and
every tender for work, on which public funds are spent, on alternative turnkey lumpsum
basis because no authority has any right to compare two dissimilar and unequal tenders,
assuming them as similar and equal. This is so because under the conventional outdated
 17

tenders, the product is not in existence whereas in case of alternative prefab tenders, the
products are in existence, which can be seen and tested for their given qualities/properties
before use, like all other transactions. The authorities can reject the alternative on valid
grounds. But they are not implementing even this simple rule as public servants.

It is also significant to note that such Government Classified Policies are fully
protected, under our sacred Constitution Article 31-C, from the intervention of all,
including even of the Courts, except in the matter of their non-implementation.

As per our sacred Constitution Article 51-A, Part IV-A, it shall be the mandatory
constitutional fundamental duty of every Indian citizen to develop the scientific temper,
humanism and spirit of inquiry and reform, and to strive towards excellence in all spheres
of individual and collective activity, so that the nation constantly rises to higher and higher
levels of endeavour and achievement.

Therefore, strict and honest implementation of these Government Classified Policy

Resolutions and the Court Verdicts should be done in the wider national interest, social
justice, fast economic development and further progress of science and technology in this
basic Mother Discipline, which shall go a long way in ensuring the public good.

While concluding, I would like to express my candid views on the system of

admissions to professional colleges, such as medical and engineering, being followed in
our country, as it is vitally concerned with this subject. Admissions are given purely on the
consideration of marks obtained in the written qualifying exams. Marks are not everything
in life. Besides, what is the sanctity of these marks? Therefore, this system is not only
totally wrong, but also completely against public, national and social interests. It is
invariably observed that the students, in spite of securing good marks, do not get
admissions for a particular branch, as they desire; and that is why they get frustrated and
some even go to the extent of committing suicides.

Therefore, it is my firm conviction that while giving admissions to the students in

professional colleges, such as engineering/medical colleges etc, personal interviews must
 18

be taken. If 100 marks are considered for admissions, 60 marks should be reserved for
written qualifying exam. This means, even if the candidate gets 80 or 85 marks or any
marks above 60 in this written qualifying exam, they should be considered as 60 marks
and the balance 40 marks should be reserved for personal interviews to be taken by a
committee of experts to assess the various important aspects, such as his aptitude and
liking, general knowledge, social approach, health, personality, family, social, educational,
financial and professional background, national, social and technical views, interest in
government service or private profession etc. If the candidate gets less than 60 marks in
written exam, he should not be called for interview for admission in professional colleges,
as he is then disqualified. This 60:40 system alone will ensure proper and correct selection
of the candidates for the benefit of all. This is the system being followed all over the world
in western countries and the famous universities like Stanford University and MIT from
USA. This subject, being of great national, social and technological importance, needs to
be seriously considered and corrected immediately in the wider national, social,
technological and educational interests and for the good of the national wealth i.e.
students, country and countrymen.

***