Norms now to help in usage of waste in road building: Minister

A meeting of the premier body of highway engineers of India has formulated norms which will pave the way for utilisation of waste material for road building, Union minister Sarvey Sathyanarayana said today.
At the inauguration of the 200th Mid-Term Council Meeting of Indian Roads Congress (IRC) here, the Minister of State for Road, Transport and Highways released five documents prepared by the body to lead to the realisition of the above goal, according to an official statement.
The documents on various norms, including urban drainage, design, construction and compaction equipment for road works, will not only help in utilisation of waste but also provide green solutions for civic agencies, the minister said.

Eco-friendly solutions were the need of the hour and, once implemented, would simultaneously generate more employment opportunities in the roads sector, the minister averred.
The ministry favours utilisation of waste as reserves of traditional materials are declining, making extraction of quality inputs dearer, Sathyanarayana said.
The minister said that now the government would be able to launch the world's biggest road sector programmes on the strength of the guidelines, code of practices and manuals prepared by IRC, the statement added.

Earlier, speaking on the occasion, IRC President C Kandasamy, who is also the Special Secretary in the ministry, hoped that a manual for expressways was soon finalised.

Through this manual, the government will be able to launch world-class, cost-efficient, safe and user-friendly expressways in the country in a big way, Kandasamy said.
Toll collection on these expressways will be electronic in nature and seamless travel would be achieved, he added.
IRC is the apex organisation for highway engineers set up in 1934 with the principal objective to provide a national forum for regular pooling of experience, expertise and ideas related to planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance of road works.