The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has announced a new policy restricting consultancy firms to assign no more than 10 national highway projects per engineer for supervision and construction oversight. This rule, intended to enhance monitoring and execution quality, will come into effect 60 days from the date of announcement, allowing firms time to adjust their staffing and assignments.
In a statement issued on Thursday, NHAI highlighted concerns that engineers assigned by consultancy firms鈥攁cting as Independent Engineers, Authority Engineers, or Supervision Consultants鈥攚ere often overloaded with multiple projects. This excessive workload, the authority noted, was compromising the ability of engineers to effectively monitor and enforce contract terms and technical specifications.
The designated engineer plays a crucial role in ensuring adherence to construction standards, acting as the primary point of control and compliance. However, when too many projects are allocated to a single professional, it "defeats the purpose of qualitative and quantitative monitoring of the projects," the statement read.
To support this move, detailed clauses have also been introduced in the guidelines for consultancy roles in Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) and Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) projects. These clauses govern the appointment of Independent or Authority Engineers and the delegation of responsibilities.
NHAI clarified that each assigned engineer must visit the project site monthly and provide detailed assessments as part of the Monthly Progress Report, in line with civil and consultancy contract terms.
The authority hopes that this limit will ensure more focused supervision, leading to better project execution, accountability, and improved road infrastructure across the country.
