NHAI’s Crackdown Following NH-66 Collapse in Kerala

In a serious setback for India’s infrastructure sector, a portion of the under-construction National Highway-66 (NH-66) in Kerala suffered a severe collapse near Kooriyad, Malappuram. This incident has prompted a sweeping investigation by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), culminating in stringent disciplinary action against the contractors, consultants, and even internal officials. With safety under scrutiny and public trust on edge, NHAI has responded with a mix of corrective measures, expert oversight, and policy enforcement, setting a precedent for greater accountability in future infrastructure projects. 

The collapse involved a 250-meter stretch of the elevated corridor, part of the Rs. 2,368 crore highway project.

Preliminary investigations, conducted by a committee of geotechnical experts from premier institutions including IIT Delhi, IIT Kanpur, and IIT Gandhinagar, revealed that the failure was due to the inability of the subsoil (notably loamy and waterlogged in nature) to support the high embankment loads. The collapse was concentrated on the upstream side of the reinforced earth (RE) wall, with the downstream section remaining intact, highlighting a localized but critical lapse in geotechnical assessment and structural design.

Despite borehole studies being conducted and shared with designers during the planning phase, it appears the necessary design reinforcements and ground improvement measures were either misjudged or neglected by the concessionaire.

NHAI, responding swiftly, took the following actions:

1. KNR Constructions Limited, the concessionaire, was debarred for one year from ongoing and future bids and a monetary penalty of Rs. 11.8 crore was levied on it.
2. The project manager of the concessionaire and the team leader of the independent engineer were suspended.
3. Highway Engineering Consultant, an independent engineering firm, was disqualified from future bidding processes.
4. Design consultants Strata Geosystem and HBS Infra Engineers, along with the safety consultant Sri Infotech, were issued show cause notices for debarment and monetary penalties of Rs. 20 lakhs.
5. The NHAI project director and a site engineer overseeing the project were suspended pending further internal review.
6. The concessionaire has been directed to reconstruct the damaged stretch entirely at its own cost, estimated at Rs. 80 crores.

To prevent recurrence of such incidents, NHAI has significantly widened the scope of its review and enforcement:

1. A second expert committee comprising representatives from the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) and the Geological Survey of India (GSI) has been formed to audit all 17 ongoing NH-66 projects, especially focusing on RE walls and slope protection works.
2. NHAI has also initiated the formulation of updated safety guidelines mandating enhanced geotechnical evaluations, improved embankment design standards, and robust water management systems for all corridor projects in the region.

The NH-66 collapse has underscored the need for stronger safeguards in highway construction. NHAI’s response signals a shift toward stricter accountability, setting a new benchmark for engineering due diligence and institutional responsibility in infrastructure projects.