Changing the Cityscape

In the second of a series of interviews with prominent engineers, Janaki Krishnamoorthi meets Shriniwas Nandargikar, Chief Engineer, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority. Inspired by an uncle who held a senior position in the Public Works Department (PWD), Shriniwas Nandargikar aspired to be a civil engineer right from his school days. Hearing his uncle talk about his vocation, watching him work at sites, and finally astounded by the projects he built, Nandargikar decided to follow his footsteps. In civil engineering, you have the satisfaction of seeing the concrete results of your ideas, thoughts and hard work, he says. The profession does entail considerable hard ...work, strain and exposure to sand, heat and dust that often affects our health. But the ultimate joy we derive after successfully completing a project outweighs the pressures. He has enjoyed many such rewarding moments in a career spanning over three-and-a-half decades, having handled several major challenging projects in the transportation sector. But there is still a dream project he hopes will come his way: the proposed multi-mode Mumbai Trans Harbour Link that will provide a road and rail link between Sewri in Mumbai and Nhava Sheva in Navi Mumbai across the harbour at an estimated cost of Rs 10,000 crore. Not that he is short of challenging ventures. He is currently handling several major projects including the Eastern Freeway, a four-lane, high-speed corridor from the Prince of Wales Museum to the Eastern Express Highway through Mumbai Port Trust roads. Based on the segmental construction technique, it will have a partly elevated road and two tunnels. But his penchant for his profession keeps his desire for more projects burning 24/7. I have reached the highest post in my field now and can now look forward only to working on interesting projects, remarks the 57 year-old as he shares his thoughts and experiences with CW... Working for the government In the government sector, we are exposed to a variety of projects that provide ample opportunities to learn and grow. But there is also an established hierarchy and large workforce with many people working on one project. So each officer has limited responsibilities, which reduces the workload. However, as we do not handle a project in its entirety, there is no job satisfaction. Engineers are also transferred every two to three years, often before they complete a project, and so there is no belonging to a project and again lack of job satisfaction. This may also cause delay in projects as the new officer takes time to get acquainted with the project. I therefore feel an engineer should be allowed to complete the project he has taken up before he is transferred. However, working at MMRDA is different as it has a corporate kind of environment with less protocols, flexible organisational structure and less manpower. So work moves faster and a few people work on a project entirely. So there is job satisfaction but you also end up working hard! Changing face of civil engineering The industry has also become more open to innovation and new technology which was not the case 15 years ago. The change has come about because of people travelling abroad and being exposed to what is happening outside. Last time when some of us went to Italy we learnt a lot about the design and technical aspects of noise barriers in flyovers and are now putting them to use in some of our projects here. Consequently, our profession has also undergone a sea change. Traditional methods and mechanisms have been replaced totally with innovative ones. When I was at MSRDC (Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation) and working on flyovers in Mumbai, we had to import machinery to help us complete the flyovers in two years. Now almost everything is available in India. Steel structures are becoming very popular. In fact, the Railways is now insisting that all its bridges should be only in steel. Likewise, using anti-corrosion technology has become quite common now particularly in marine structures, which was unheard of four decades ago. Preventing corrosion in marine bridges In oceanic bridges, the structures underwater tend to corrode because of constant exposure to water. The old Thane creek bridge built in the early 1970s had developed corrosion s that were not owing to any lapse on the part of the implementing agency. At that time, the technology to protect underwater structures was not available in India. In the second Thane creek bridge built almost two decades later, we were able to take steps to minimise such corrosion. International consultants were appointed to oversee every aspect of planning, design and construction. Several features were adopted in the design and construction to ensure that the substructure and superstructure had a minimum life span of 100 years. Open foundations were taken into the bedrock and foundation concrete was laid in the dry environment after the seawater was totally pumped out. The piers in the intertidal zone were coated with epoxy coal tar paint. Lack of recognition for civil engineers When a building is constructed, the name of the architect is displayed but not that of the engineer. Some efforts are being made by the government to recognise engineers and some organisations are also inviting engineers to participate in seminars and conferences. Things are better now but definitely much more needs to be done on this score. Portfolio: Nandargikar's list of major projects includes: • Second Thane Creek Bridge, Vashi: 1,800 m long at a cost of Rs 125 crore• Mumbai-Pune Expressway: India's first expressway, 96 km long at a cost of Rs 1,600 crore• Flyovers in Mumbai: Planning tendering, shifting of utilities for 55 flyovers; supervising construction of 13 flyovers• Andheri flyover:1,200 m long at a cost of Rs 110 crore• Jaisingpur Bypass: First build operate and transfer (BOT) project in Maharashtra, completed in 1994• Western and Eastern Express Highways: Widening and improving• Skywalks: Coordination of 36 skywalks in Mumbai Metropolitan Region of which 24 are operational now. Shriniwas Ramakant Nandargikar • BE (Civil) from Pune University (1975)• MSc (Transport Planning & Engineering) from Leeds University, UK (1987)• Research Assistant (Engineering) in Central Water and Power Research Station, Khadakwasala (1975-1977)• Passed UPSC Engineering Services Examination and joined Military Engineering Services, Pune, as Assistant Executive Engineer (1977-1980)• Passed MPSC Engineering Services Examination and selected for Class-I post. Joined Public Works Department (PWD), Maharashtra, in 1980 as Assistant Executive Engineer and rose up to become Chief Engineer (1980-2008)• On deputation at MSRDC (1999-2001)• Came on deputation to MMRDA in 2005 and was absorbed by MMRDA in 2008. Challenging Projects  Project: Second Thane Creek Bridge (Mankhurd-Vashi Bridge)Period: 1987-1997 (Nandargikar took charge in 1993)Implementing agency: PWDCost: Rs 125 croreHighlights: Box girder bridge across creek with pre-stressed concrete deck and reinforced concrete piers; 1,800 m long with six lanes divided into two carriageways; continuous spans of 108 m constructed by balanced cantilever method with expansion joints.Challenges: As the bridge was over the creek, much of the work had to be done below the sea bed. Cofferdams carried on pontoons were lowered into the sea, all the water pumped from inside and a dry environment created for manual work. Being a balanced cantilever bridge, after constructing the pillar in the centre, the segments on one side had to be cast and the same counterbalanced with segments on the other side. We had to counter tidal variations and some unexpected gushing of water and sand from the bottom and then dewatering, reveals Nandargikar. Despite all this, I speeded up the execution and completed the north carriageway by 1994 and the south carriageway in 1996. Project: Mumbai-Pune Expressway (Involved in initial survey, planning of the whole project and supervision of construction from Pune to Khandala segment)Period: 1998-2002Implementing agency: MSRDC and Konkan Railway Corporation LtdCost: Rs 1,600 croreHighlights: India's first expressway, 93 km long with two carriageways, three concrete lanes and five illuminated ventilated tunnels.Challenges: Acquiring 800 hectare of land, much of which was forest land, and obtaining various clearances. While surveying, we had to walk through hard-to-access thick forest areas and climb mountains, recalls Nandargikar. Considerable follow-up was required to obtain clearances, particularly for the forest land from the government. But the government and other officials were very supportive and we were able to get all the clearances in less than a year. Construction too required foresight and precise planning. As the roads were totally concrete, huge quantities of rock were required for the aggregates. So quarries were identified along the expressway, acquired and handed over to the contractor. Concrete batching plants were set up at site as an enormous quantity of concrete was required and transporting it through undeveloped areas of the expressway would be difficult. Concrete paver finishers that were not available in India at the time were imported. Another major challenge was shifting and transplanting 6,000-odd trees. Project: Anik Panjarpol Link Road (ongoing)Period: 2008 onwardsImplementing agency: MMRDACost: Rs 221 croreHighlights: 5 km long, forming part of Eastern Freeway with flyover, bridges, subways and a tunnel.Challenges: Encompasses every kind of construction including normal bridges, subways, viaduct over a railway line and a 500 m long tunnel, the first of its kind in a city in India. Tunnel construction is technically a tricky job as we do not know what strata is available underground; it could be loose soil or hard rock, says Nandargikar. We have to just go on and counter whatever comes with appropriate remedial steps. In this case, we encountered loose soil and had to devise supports before proceeding further. We also conducted controlled blasting with extreme caution as the area was populated. Other demanding tasks included acquisition of land from BARC, HPCL and BPCL; rehabilitating 5,000-odd tenements including 30 religious structures; safely diverting a HPCL pipeline carrying aviation fuel; shifting/raising Tata pylons; and removing a railway track.