Professional Documents
Culture Documents
A. Embankment Construction
Purchasing of soil will be get delayed due to the government’s decision to stop commercial mining
and changed procedure for approval for borrow pits, then the Contractor will be faced great difficulty
in obtain required material.
Accordingly, on 22 October 2015 the Director General, Road Development Authority issued a Circular
reference RDA/DG/Circular/2015/01 (Annexure 02) to all Project Director’s to follow Circular 02/2015
dated 29 September 2015 issued by the Secretary to the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and
Environment.
According to the Circular dated 29 September 2015 issued by the Secretary to the Ministry of
Mahaweli Development and Environment it is expressed that duties authorized to Divisional
Secretaries to issue permits as per the Section 8(1) and 8(2) of the Mines and Minerals Act no 33 of
1992 amended from Act no 66 of 2009, according to the Circular no. 02/06/09 (Viii) dated on 20
October 2010 for soil, gravel and sand from the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau, was changed
from 15 October 2015.
In the above Circular it has stated that further requests regarding soil and gravel mining for
commercial purposes will not be considered by the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau until a
proper procedure is introduce in future.
However, Mining of more than 35 cubes for non-commercial purposes and development projects
the decisions should be taken regarding issuance of license by a district committee comprised of
District Secretary, Geological Survey and Mines Bureau, Central Environmental Authority, Mahaveli
Authority, Department of Forest Conservation, Sri Lanka Police, Sri Lanka Land Reclamation and
Development Corporation and Local Councils.
Considering above circular existing suppliers could not proceed with supply of sub-base and
embankment material as per the Contractor’s current material procurement plan, and only way to
process mining license through the category of Mining of more than 35 cubes for non-commercial
purposes and development projects.
2. Material Requirement
Construction of embankment using soil Type 1 and Type 11, the Contracted BOQ quantity of 6,030
Cu.m has been planned as per the approved construction program for 3 months, so as production rate
of 2,000 Cu.m per month. The required material planned to be taken from our Bulathsinghala and
Welipenna barrow pits in order to catch up the planned program, which are having licence of 525
Cubes (1,485 Cu.m) per month for each. Accordingly, the total requirement of loose volume of 8,442
Cu.m of embankment material planned to obtain from these borrow pits from October 2017 to end
December 2017.
However, the Scope of the Works has been changed due to various reasons as known, which increased
the embankment material requirement up to 17,580 Cu.m (loose volume of 24,612 Cu.m). Therefore,
it is obvious that additional time to be required to find out considerable number of suitable borrow
pits, which additional lose volume more than 16,170 Cu.m (11,550 Cu.m as compacted), and to get
the formal approvals from relevant authorities including transport licence, and finally supply to the
Site and laying & compaction.
3. Material Survey
With our experience in this project since last six months of time, we tried to find out the suitable
material compliance to the Specifications and understood that it was very difficult to find out suitable
material within 70 km. The material survey which we have carried out since last six months as follows;
Current Status
Distance From
Licence Grade
Approximate
Barrow Pit
Site (Km)
of Material
Received
available
Quantity
Location
(Cubes)
Suitability
Date of
Licence
Quality/
No.
Initially, we planned to get our total requirement of embankment and sub-base material from our own
barrow pit at Meepe. But, due to the public issue arise during the approval process, it had to be
abandoned. Then, as an alternative immediately approval has taken for our own borrow pits at
Bulathsinghala and Wellipanna. Even these barrow pits are more than 65 km away from our Site, and
however, we planned to take the original requirements 6,030 Cu.m from there.
In the meantime the continuous survey has been conducted to find barrow areas, which are
compliance to the Specifications, and we found few pits but the cost is very high and can’t be afforded
with our BOQ rate.
With new legislation of the country as explained above, in terms of operating barrow pits has been
changed, and also it takes more than 3 to 4 months to get the formal approval from relevant
authorities in such a way that:
Expected
No. Activity Time Period
(Week)
01 Submit Application to GS & MB 1
02 Submit Applications to CEA, NBRO, UDA, Department of Archaeology, 1
District Secretary
03 Joint inspection organized by GS & MB 3
04 Recommendation from CEA 2
05 Recommendations from UDA, Department of Archaeology 1
06 District Secretary’s Approval 1
07 Recommendation from NBRO 4-6
08 Report from Water Resources Board 2-3
09 Approval from District Committee, Chaired by District Secretary 2-4
10 Other documentations such as Bank Guarantee and Agreement, and 1
Obtain the IML
If Reports from NBRO, Water Resources Board will not be required, then the process can be expedite
and IML can be taken about 1 - 1 ½ month earlier than the expected time period.
Since the normal approval procedure for a borrow pit takes nearly 3 – 4 months.
Taken in to consideration of above facts, an additional time will be required in order to complete the
embankment construction is 12 months, with available borrow material, and therefore the said time
period had been considered for revised construction program.
Apart from that it is required at-least another two week time to obtain transport licence after approval
of the borrow pit.
The BOQ quantity of 1,310 Cu.m (bulk volume of 1,572 Cu.m) were planned to be taken from our
Bandaragama quarry plant. But with the Scope Change, the rock filling quantity has increased up to
6,806 Cu.m (bulk volume of 8,167 Cu.m). Further, to that the boulder filling quantity of 1,550 Cu.m to
be required and also additional rock volume of 465 Cu.m (30% of boulder filling) required for fill voids
of boulder filling. Therefore, the total of rock and boulder quantity will be 8,632 Cu.m in bulk volume
need to be supplied to Site.
Assuming that average 3 tippers allocated for rock and boulders transport considering quarry capacity,
Pursuant to Sub-Clause 8.4 (c) of Conditions of Contract the Contractor is entitled for extension of
Time for Completion for exceptionally adverse climatic conditions;
‘on any single day, the rainfall measured at the relevant meteorological rainfall station as given in
Contract Data exceeds the 98 percentile value of the daily rainfall for that calendar month for that
station, as calculated using the last 120 calendar months of that station’s rainfall records or, in the
case where the station’s rainfall records do not extend back as far as 120 months, then that station’s
available records, and
The rainfall measured at that meteorological station exceeds 10mm (ten millimetres) on the day in
question, and
Work activities are affected on that day in that station’s zone of influence’.
Therefore, as per the Contract an estimated forecasted adverse climatic conditions should be taken in
to consideration when preparation of construction programme.
According to the weather report analysis attached herewith (Annexure 03) shows that estimated
expected 116 wet days from March to December, which will affect the progress of the work apart
from frequent submerging of the work Site as you well aware.
However, as per the discussion had with you we will try our best to complete the project 31 December
2018, with our maximum effort.