National-level SQC workshop held in Dehradun under PMGSY

A national-level workshop of State Quality Coordinators (SQCs) under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) was organised on Tuesday in Dehradun, Utarakhand. The workshop focused on key issues related to improving the quality of rural roads and gave special emphasis to the new 'Stage Passing' system proposed for implementation in the upcoming PMGSY-IV program.
Under this new system, the road construction process has been divided into four stages, and approval for moving from one stage to the next must mandatorily be obtained from the concerned Project Implementation Unit (PIU). This mechanism is being recognized as a significant step towards ensuring quality and transparency in construction activities.
On this occasion, Shailesh Kumar Singh, secretary of ministry of rural development, addressed the workshop via video conferencing. He appreciated the efforts made by the Uttarakhand government for quality improvement and said that systems like Stage Passing would be effective in ensuring transparency and quality assurance in project execution.

A demonstration of the mobile app being developed to implement the Stage Passing system was also presented during the workshop. The app aims to provide technological support for efficient implementation of this mechanism.
Amita Shukla, joint secretary (RC) and director general, NRRDA, emphasized that quality is the topmost priority in PMGSY projects, and this new system will further strengthen the existing quality framework.
During the workshop, Radhika Jha, secretary of rural development department of Uttarakhand provided details about the inspection app developed by URRDA. She explained that this app would facilitate monitoring of inspection activities from junior engineers to chief engineers.
On this occasion, DR. I K Pateriya, director (P-III), NRRDA, along with his team, was also present and shared detailed information about quality monitoring mechanisms in PMGSY.
The workshop was attended by Himanshu Khurana, chief executive officer, URRDA, SK Pathak, chief engineer, URRDA, and state quality coordinators from across the country, who shared their views on quality-related issues.
This workshop proved to be a significant milestone not only in the context of the development and expansion of the rural road network but also in further strengthening the quality assurance systems under PMGSY.