HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION OF THE INDIAN
ROADS CONGRESS HELD AT PATNA (BIHAR) FROM
14TH TO 17TH NOVEMBER, 2009
On the invitation of the Government of Bihar, the
Indian Roads Congress organized its 70th Annual
Session at Patna from 14 to 17 November 2009 with
an unprecedented grand success. The Session was
inaugurated by Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble Chief
Minister of Bihar on the 14 November 2009. The
Inaugural Function was presided over by Shri Sushil
Kumar Modi, Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar;
Dr. Prem Kumar, Hon’ble Minister, Road Construction
Department, Govt. of Bihar; Shri Nirmaljit Singh,
Director General (Road Development) & Spl. Secretary,
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways; Shri Pratyaya
Amrit, Secretary, Road Construction Department, Govt.
of Bihar; Shri Ram Dhyan Ram, Engineer-in-Chief
cum Addl. Commissioner cum Spl. Secretary, Road
Construction Department, Govt. of Bihar; Shri Baban
Ram, Local Organizing Secretary 70th Annual Session
of IRC, Patna, besides a number of other dignitaries,
delegates, invitees and guests graced the Inaugural
fucntion.
Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar lighting the
Traditional Inaugural Lamp alongwith other high Dignitaries
A view of the dias during Inauguration
4 INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010
During the Session, important events included
presentations and discussions on 8 Papers
published in Journal of Indian Roads Congress
Volume 70 Parts 1,2 & 3, General Report on Road
Research Work Done in India during 2008-2009,
Technical Presentations on Highway Planning,
Management, Performance Evaluation and
Instrumentation, Pavement Engineering and Paving
Materials, Panel Discussion on “Use on Non-
Conventional Materials in Road Construction”,
Expert Talk on “Flexible Concrete Pavement with
Different Materials-A Sustainable Solution for
Village Roads”, “Public Private Partnership” &
“Technology Transfer and Knowledge Sharing”
were held during the Session. 61 st Meeting of
the IRC Highway Research Board, 70th Business
Meeting and 189th & 190th Council Meetings
were also held. The Government of Bihar had
organized a successful and very impressive
Technical Exhibition with record participations
of 108 Exhibitors during the Session which
was inaugurated by Dr. Prem Kumar, Hon’ble
Minister, Road Construction Department Govt.
of Bihar on 13 November 2009. The Session was
attended by more than 2177 Highway Engineers
from various facets of Roads, Bridges and Road
Transport fraternity from all over the country including
dignitaries from AASHTO (USA) & France.
Dr. Prem Kumar, Hon’ble Minister, Road Construction
Department, Govt. of Bihar, inaugurating the Technical Exhibition
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
Shri Pratyaya Amrit, Chairman, Steering Committee,
70th Annual Session of IRC & Secretary, Road
Construction Department, Govt. of Bihar welcomed the
dignitaries, delegates and the invitees who graced the
Inaugural Function.
Shri Pratyaya Amrit, Chairman, Steering Committee, 70th Annual
Session of IRC & Secretary, Road Construction Department, Govt.
of Bihar delivering Welcome Address
Shri R.P. Indoria, Secretary General, IRC read out
the Messages conveying good wishes for the success
of the Session received from the President of India,
Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil; Vice-President of India,
Shri Mohammad Hamid Ansari; Governor of Bihar,
Shri Devanand Konwar; Chief Minister of Bihar, Shri
Nitish Kumar; Union Minister of Road Transport and
Highways, Shri Kamal Nath; Union Minister of Urban
Development, Shri S. Jaipal Reddy; Union Ministers of
State in the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways,
Shri Mahadeo Singh Khandela and Shri R.P.N. Singh;
Deputy Chief Minister Govt. of Bihar, Shri Sushil
Shri R.P. Indoria, Secretary General, IRC reading out messages
received for the success of Annual Session
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, April 2010
Kumar Modi; Minister, Road Construction Department,
Govt. of Bihar, Dr. Prem Kumar and Secretary to the
Government of India, Ministry of Road Transport &
Highways, Shri Brahm Dutt.
Shri D.B. Deshpande, President, Indian Roads Congress
& Advisor, Maharashtra Airport Development Company
(Former Secretary, Maharashtra, PWD) in his Address
expressed his sincere gratitude to the Government of
Bihar for inviting IRC to host the 70th Annual Session
at Patna. He mentioned that IRC had the privilege of
holding its three Annual Sessions earlier 26th Annual
Session in 1961, 41st Annual Session in January 1981 &
53rd Annual Session in December 1992 in Bihar.
President, IRC extended a warm welcome to Shri Nitish
Kumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar for having
spared his valuable time to inaugurate the Session
and Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Hon’ble Deputy Chief
Shri D.B. Deshpande, President, IRC delivering his Presidential
Address
Minister of Bihar for presiding over the function. He
also extended hearty welcome to Dr. Prem Kumar,
Hon’ble Minister, RCD, Govt. of Bihar. He extended a
very warm and cordial welcome to all the distinguished
Members of the Council, Guests and Invitees and also
international professionals who had come to take part in
the IRC Session.
Shri Deshpande informed that Indian Roads Congress
(IRC) is a premier Institution of highway professionals
in the country and provides the forum at national level
for sharing knowledge and experience on various
issues of road development in the country. Out of
many distinguished contributions of the IRC the most
important one is the publishing of over 300 Standards
5
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
& Specifications, Codes of Practice and Guidelines as
well as Special Publications and set of the Highway
Research Reports. He said that IRC is instrumental in
bringing uniformity in planning, design, construction,
maintenance and operation of road infrastructure in
the country and holds Annual Sessions every year
where Technical Papers presented by the professional
engineers are discussed. He added that the role and the
activities of IRC have increased manifold in the recent
past with the globalisation and emphasis on Private
Sector Participation in road development.
Speaking on the occasion he mentioned that last one-year
achievements of IRC are noteworthy having brought
out may publications: (i) IRC:12-2009 “Guidelines for
Access, Location and Layout of Roadside Fuel Stations
and Service Station (Third Revision)” (ii) IRC:27-
2009 “Specifications for Bituminous Macadam (First
Revision)” and (iii) IRC:111-2009 “Specifications for
Dense Graded Bituminous Mixes” have been published
and were released at the Council Meeting held at
Kodaikanal in June 2009. IRC:SP:84-2009 “Manual of
Specifications & Standards for Four-Laning of Highways
through Public Private Partnership” has already been
printed and is in circulation for use by the professionals
after approval at Kodaikanal Council Meeting in June
2009. Another set of noteworthy publications namely
IRC:SP:21-2009 “Guidelines on Landscaping and
Tree Plantation (First Revision)” and IRC:SP:30-
2009 “Manual on Economic Evaluation of Highway
Projects in India (First Revision) have been published
and are slated to be released in this function. All efforts
have been made to bring quality of printing of IRC
publications to the international standards. He said that
concerted effort is being made to make IRC Secretariat
computer savvy, the result of which will be seen in the
near future. A Seminar on Public Private Partnership in
Highway Sector was held in New Delhi in August 2009
which received overwhelming response. A number of
workshops were also held during this year at Bhopal,
Chandigarh, Shillong & New Delhi. At present, there
are 154 Associate Members, 96 Individual Associate
Members, 3041 Members, 24 Student Members and
9345 Life Members of IRC. The membership has also
gone up by 515 during this year. I am confident that IRC
will continue to play a leading role in road development
activities.
6 INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010
He also stressed on Engineering Education. There was
sudden growth of Engineering Colleges in the past two
decades. It had raised alarm on quality of education.
The exceptions are IITs and the like Institutes. The
objective of the Colleges and Institutions should be
to make quality engineers available. The review of
engineering education is overdue. The curriculum
needs to be redrafted so that it will become more useful
in practice. There is wide gap between teaching and
practice. New subjects like financial analysis and legal
issues need to be introduced. The system of practicing
professionals visiting Colleges as visiting lecturers
needs to be started and at the same time teachers in
Engineering Colleges should be deputed for a year or
so, in the field for on hand experience. Thus, there needs
to be a continuous interaction between Engineering
Institutions and Construction Industry so that education
given in Colleges is in tune with the field requirements.
He expected that IRC will open up the dialogue in this
respect with appropriate authorities.
Shri Deshpande emphasized on Construction Industry
that the present and the future programmes and stiff
targets of highway development have forced the
highway construction industry to change its mind set
and embrace professional management and adopt
excellence in Corporate governance. The capacity
augmentation of the construction industry in all areas
has become absolutely necessary. In order to be
successful, the work culture needs to be changed and
the construction industry needs to imbibe strong ethical
standards, enhance human resources, adopt corporate
social responsibilities and set an example of corporate
leadership with high quality output and International
Safety Standards. The construction industry should
also exhibit environmental concern. The quarries and
the construction sites are required to be converted into
artificial lakes or eco-friendly areas so as to add value
to the Highway Sector. The construction industry needs
to train all the personnel right from the Labourers to
the Managers. Very high level of awareness is required
to be created amongst the workers with continuous in-
house training with an objective that no supervision or
very less supervision at site will be necessary.
On Institutional strengthening, he said that the PWDs.
of all the State Govts. were in-charge of all activities of
Road Development in the past. Now the consultants are
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
entrusted as a matter of routine all types of works of Road
Development including survey, investigation, planning,
design, construction, maintenance and operation etc.
This had reverse effect on the technical manpower of the
PWDs and the engineers are now losing technical edge
and expertise for which they were known and were proud.
In the past, the Executive Engineer used to be technical
advisor for the District Administration. At present, they
are doing mostly the managerial jobs. In order to get
“value for money” for the Govt. Organisations and also
to protect the interest of the road users at large, it is
of paramount importance that the PWD engineers are
technically very sound and they always keep abreast
with the international developments. This will ensure
that whatever products are delivered by the consultants
and contractors or other agencies are upto the desired
standards. He recommended that the Union Govt.
and the State Govts. may constitute a Core Group of
Secretaries to look into these issues. The objective shall
be to strengthen the Engineering Organisations without
adding any cost to establishment. One of the options
may be that the engineers in the public sector are given
the option to go and work for the private sector for some
time during their career.
Shri Deshpande while speaking on Safety &
Security Standards said that the standard of safety on
construction sites should be very high. The objective
should be zero accident. Utmost precaution needs to
be taken in a scientific way for safe passage of traffic
during construction. The management of activities at
site requires due diligence. The safety measures during
operation and maintenance of PPP projects need also
to be monitored continuously. It may be advisable to
consider a separate authority like Safety Commissioner
for supervision and enforcement of safety standards
on constructions on a continuous basis in view of the
volume and expanse of highway construction activities
in our country.
Speaking on Road Land Bank, the President, IRC said
that the total road length in India including all categories
of road is about 33 lakhs km. The land within the right
of way on either side of carriage-way is vulnerable for
encroachment. It is necessary to think as to how this
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, April 2010
land can be best utilised so that there is no encroachment
and it will also generate income. A strip of land of 5 m
on either side near road boundary can be considered for
giving on lease for growing of Bamboo plantation or
otherwise. The plantation and cutting can be done in a
planned manner. This will ensure that the land bank is
utilised for dual purpose of protecting the right of way
from encroachment and generating some revenue. The
extent of such land bank available will be about 33 lakh
hectare across the country considering the entire road
length.
On Rural Roads he said that the Govt. of India has
taken up-gradation of rural roads on a large scale. A
positive impact is now seen in the areas where these
roads are completed. A critical review at this stage will
be helpful to assess the technical performance and to
explore possibility of introducing latest state of art
materials and methods. An attempt may also be made to
reduce the cost per km with the vast data now available.
The maintenance of these assets will pose problem
once the initial period of maintenance is over. The
different instruments or modalities will be necessary for
maintaining service level of these roads on sustainable
basis. I will like to invite attention of the State Govts.
to this issue.
On PPP he mentioned that there is a wide gap between
the funds currently made available for road development
as well as maintenance and actual requirement.
The allocations do not meet increased demand for
better roads. It is, therefore, necessary that additional
resources are mobilised by private investment in road
development. The Govt. of India and many States
have taken initiative and started many projects of four-
laning of National Highways & State Highways. Many
a PPP projects are already completed. The viability
Gap funding or the equity, support which is given to
make project financially viable has also encouraged
private sector for investment. There are many issues,
which need to be looked into vigilantly on PPP projects.
The two most important points, which need immediate
attention are, the maintenance of desired level of service
during entire concession period and the durability of the
structures beyond the Concession Period. In addition to
7
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION

this, the Toll Plazas need to be minimum and an uniform

tolling policy across the country needs to be adopted to
make the travel user-friendly and hassle free. The public
participation through public hearings at the inception
stage of the future projects will be essential in order to
get the continuous support for payment of toll.
Stressing the importance of maintenance, Shri Deshpande
said that the total road length in our country is about 33
lakhs km. The effort to upgrade the road network right
from the Village Roads to the National Highways by
Union Govt. and State Govts., has positive impact on
development of all sectors in our country. However, at
Dr. Prem Kumar, Hon’ble Minister, Road Construction
the same time the maintenance of existing road network, Department, Govt. of Bihar, delivering his Address during
cannot be ignored. In the similar way, large packages for Inaugural function
maintenance are required to be taken up and monitored
at Govt. of India and State Govt. level. Possibility of Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar
clubbing cluster of these roads with a main heavy density inaugurated the 70th Annual Session.
corridor under PPP can also be explored. I would like
to conclude by recommending that the Union Govt. and
State Governments may appoint a Commission or High
Power Committee to look into these issues. This will
help to accelerate road development activity and also
help to create change in work culture. I am sure that
with the dedicated efforts of all, the Indian roads will
reach the international standards and in future India will
be known for its roads.
Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister
of Bihar and Dr. Prem Kumar, Hon’ble Minister, Road
Construction Department, Govt. of Bihar, have also
addressed during the Inaugural Function.
Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar, delivering his
Inaugural Address

In his Inaugural Address, Shri Nitish Kumar welcomed

Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar,
delivering his Address during Inaugural function
all the dignitaries and delegates to the historic city
of Patliputra, the modern Patna. In his illuminating
speech he requested the Ministry of Road Transport &
Highways to grant more funds for the development of
road infrastructure in Bihar. He has also stressed that
the delegates to come out with innovative technologies
so as to construct durable roads in a cost effective way.
Presiding over the Inaugural Function of 70th Annual
Session, Hon’ble Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar,

8 INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010

 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION

Shri Sushil Kumar Modi welcomed all the dignitaries

and delegates to the city of Patna and wished to have
enjoyable and meaningful stay in Patna.
Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar, Shri Nitish Kumar,
thereafter, released IRC:SP:21-2009 “Guidelines on
Landscaping & Tree Plantation” & IRC:SP:30-2009
“Manual on Economic Evaluation of Highway Projects
in India”. He also felicitated the Authors of the Papers
by distributing the following Awards and Medals:
a) IRC Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award
for the year 2009 (Conferred for an outstanding
contribution in the field of Highway Engineering) Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar, presenting the
Awarded to Dr. S. Velmurugan. IRC medals to the awardees

Gangopadhyay and Co-author Dr. (Mrs.) Purnima

Parida for their Paper No.539 - “Estimation of
Fuel Loss during Idling of Vehicles at Signalised
Intersections in Delhi” printed in IRC Journal
Volume 69 Part 1.

IRC:SP:21-2009 is being released by Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble

Chief Minister of Bihar

Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Bihar, presening the

IRC medals to the awardees

(c) Medal Instituted by Bihar PWD (for Outstanding

IRC:SP:30-2009 is being released by Shri Nitish Kumar, Hon’ble
Chief Minister of Bihar
b) Indian Roads Congress Medal (for the Best Paper
discussed at the Annual Session): Awarded to Dr. S.
Paper on Road Research): Awarded to Dr. V.
Thamizh Arasan and Shriniwas S. Arkatkar for
their Paper entitled “Enhancing the Accuracy of
Estimation of Passenger Car Unit for Vehicles
of Heterogeneous Traffic” printed in Highway
Research Journal Vol No. 2 No.1 and Awarded to Dr.
B.B. Pandey for his Paper “Improved Design of
Flexible Pavements” printed in Highway Research
Journal Vol No. 2 No.2.

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, April 2010 9

 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
(d) Commendation Certificates (for the Papers of
average merit)
(i) Awarded to Shri Manik Barman and
Dr. B.B. Pandey for their Paper No.545
“Backcalculation of Layer Moduli of Concrete
Pavement by Falling Weight Deflectometer”,
printed in IRC Journal Volume 69 Part 3.
(ii) Awarded to Dr. Sunil Bose, S/Shri S. Satya
Kumar, R. Sridhar & Dr. K.S. Reddy for their
Paper No. 540 “Analytical Investigation on
the Influence of Loading and Temperature on
Top-Down Cracking in Bituminous Layers”,
printed in IRC Journal Volume 69 Part 1.
Shri B.L. Ajitsaria, Vice President, IRC proposed the
Vote-of-Thanks to the Hon’ble Ministers and all other
dignitaries for their gracious presence at the Inaugural
Function. He expressed gratitude to the Govt. of Bihar
for inviting IRC for holding its 70th Annual Session at
Patna.
On the 14 November 2009, 61st Meeting of Highway
Research Board was held. Highway Research Board
discussed in detail the management of research studies
and reporting of research findings. It was the general
opinion of members that quality of research work being
done needs improvement in order to make research
more focused and implementable on the field. Research
findings were not being adequately reported for the
benefit of those who want to use them. To achieve this,
it was suggested that the findings of research schemes
may be uploaded on Websites of MORTH, NHAI &
IRC.
A view of the dais during Highway Research Board Meeting
10
The members suggested that Executive Engineers and
Assistant Engineers from Government departments and
Civil Engineers from private organizations working in
the field may be encouraged to write papers based on
their experience. The members also gave suggestions
for improving the technical content of the papers being
published in IRC Journals and other publications.
Secretary General, IRC informed that IRC had
organized Regional Workshops on “Quality Assurance
and Quality Control in Road and Bridge Projects” for
Northern, Eastern and Central regions of the country
to disseminate knowledge and to increase awareness of
Civil Engineers on Quality Control aspects.
Secretary General, IRC also informed that the Committee
for Accreditation of New Materials and Techniques had
accredited 27 new materials/techniques for being used
on trial basis.
President, IRC appealed to all the members to give
effective suggestions for practical implementation on
the field which would be helpful in putting the Road
Research in our country back on track.
Towards the end of meeting, Presentations on
“Strategic Plan for Road Research in India” by Prof.
A. Veeraragavan, IIT, Madras; “APTF Research
Programme” by Dr. Sunil Bose, CRRI and “Research
Needs in Traffic Engineering” by Dr. M. Parida, IIT
Roorkee were made, which were well taken by the
members.
The Council in its 189th meeting held on the 14
November, 2009 transacted the administrative,
financial and general business of the IRC. After detailed
discussions, the Council approved the following seven
draft documents and three amendments of HSS, BSS &
GSS Committees:
1. “Guidelines for Variable Message Signs”.
2. “Road Safety Audit Manual”.
3. Revision of IRC:67-2001 “Code of Practice for
Road Signs”.
4. Revision of IRC:24-2001 “Standard Specifications
and Code of Practice for Road Bridges, Steel Road
Bridges (Limit State Method).
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION

A view of the dais during 189th Council Meeting MoU beetwen AASHTO & IRC is being signed by Mr. John
Horseley, Executive Director, AASHTO (Right) and Shri R.P.
Indoria, Secretary General, IRC (Left) during 189th Council Meeting
5. Amendment to IRC:SP:65-2005 “Guidelines for
Design and Construction of Segmental Bridges”. eight Papers were presented by the respective Authors,
6. Revision of IRC:6-2000 “Standard Specifications which evoked lively discussion from the participants:
and Code of Practice for Road Bridges, Section-II
1. Paper No.548 “Fatigue Behaviour of Polymer
– Loads and Stresses”.
Modified Bituminous Concrete Mixtures” by Ms.
7. Amendment to IRC:SP:80-2008 “Guidelines for Shivangi Gupta & Prof. A. Veeraragavan.
Corrosion Prevention, Monitoring and Remedial
2. Paper No.549 “Modelling Congestion on Urban
Measures for Concrete Bridge Structures (Table
Roads Using Speed .
6.6)”.
Profile Data” by Shri M.V.L.R. Anjaneyulu & Dr.
8. Amendments in the values of material properties of B.N. Nagaraj.
Steel in IRC:6-2000, IRC:18-2000, IRC:21-2000,
3. Paper No.551 “Determination of Waterway Under
IRC:22-2008, IRC:24-2001 and draft IRC:24
A Bridge in Himalayan Region – Some Case
(LSM).
Studies” by Prof. S.K. Mazumder (presented by
9. “Guidelines for Selection, Operation and Shri S. Mukherjee).
Maintenance of Paver Finisher”.
4. Paper No.552 “Determination of Congestion Cost
10. “Guidelines on Requirements for Environmental in Central Business District of New Delhi – A Case
Clearances for Road Projects”. Study” by Ms. Aditi Singh & Dr. P.K. Sarkar.
As IRC and AASHTO (USA) share a number of
common aims and in order to collaborate on the
pursuit of these commain aims through exchange of
information, consultation and cooperation, an MoU
betwen AASHTO & IRC was signed by Mr. John
Horseley, Executive Director, AASHTO and Shri R.P.
Indoria, Secretary General, IRC during 189th Council
Meeting.
In the Technical Sessions ten Papers were published in
the IRC Journal Volume 70 Parts 1, 2 & 3 out of which A view of the dais during discussion on Papers No. 549, 550 & 552

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, April 2010 11

 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION

5. Paper No.553 “Bio-Enzyme Stabilized Lateritic Expert Talk on following topics were held:
Soil as a Highway Material” by Prof. A.U. Ravi
1. “Flexible Concrete Pavement with Different
Shankar, Shri Harsha Kumar Rai & Shri I. Ramesha Materials- A Sustainable Solution for Village
Mithanthaya. Roads“ by Dr. B.B. Pandey.
6. Paper No.555 “RCC Box Culverts - Methodology 2. “Public Private Partnership” by Shri Mathieu
and Designs Including Computer Method” by Shri Muzumdar.
B.N. Sinha & Shri R.P. Sharma.
3. ‘Technology Transfer and Knowledge Sharing” by
7. Paper No.556 “Investigations on Unsoaked Mr. Chris Francis.
Blended Laterite Using PFWD, PBT, DCP
and CBR Tests” by Dr. Varghese George, Ch.
Nageshwar Rao & Shri R. Shivashankar.
8. Paper No.557 “Road Transport Demand Forecast
for 2000 AD Revisited and Demand Forecast
for 2021” by Dr. L.R. Kadiyali & Ms. T.V.
Shashikala.

A view of the dais during Expert Talk

In order to keep abreast with the latest technical

developments, following Technical Presentations were
made through Powerpoint which were well received by
the audience, as being very informative and educative:
1. “Working Faster and Smarter with MXROAD
Suit” by Shri Jugal Makwana, M/s Bentley System
A view of the dais during discussion on Papers No.548 & 553 India (P) Ltd.

A view of the dais during discussion on Papers No.551 & 556 A view of the dais during Technical Presentation

12 INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010

 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
A view of the dais during Technical Presentation
Shri Jugal Makwana, M/s. Bentley System India (P) Ltd. making
Technical Presentation
2. “Shell Thiopave – An Emerging Technology” by
Mr. David Strickland, M/s. Shell India Markets
Pvt. Ltd.
3. “Improving Road Safety through Standardized
Signage and Road Marking Systems” by Shri
Vishal Kedia, M/s. 3M India Ltd.
4. “EQR and CRS TMT Re-Bar” by Shri T.K. Paul,
M/s. Shyam Steel Industries Ltd.
5. “Technical Innovations in 30 Years Old Stagnate
Technology-The Smart Joint” by Mr. Del Stephen
Brown, M/s. METCO.
6. ‘Second Vivekananda Bridge Project on NH-2
Near Kolkata” by Dr. B.C. Roy, M/s. Second
Vivekananda Bridge Tollway Company Pvt. Ltd.
7. “Design and Construction of Stabilized Base and
Sub-Base with RBI Grade 81” by Shri Satander
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, April 2010
Kumar, M/s. Legend Surface Developers Pvt.
Ltd.
8. “First SMA (Stone Matrix Asphalt) Stretch in India
Experiences in Palanpur-Deesa Section of NH-14
State Gujarat-India” by Mr. Bernd Abele, M/s. J
Rettenmaier & Sohne.
9. “21st Century Thinking in Reinforced Concrete
Structures: Stainless Steel Rebar” by Mr. John M
Duffy, M/s. Outokumpu India Pvt. Ltd.
10. “First Use of Disc Bearings in India for Bandra
Worli Sea Link Project” by Shri Santanu Adhikary,
M/s. Mageba Bridge Products Pvt. Ltd.
11. “Polymer Modified Bitumens, 30 years of
Experience” by Mr. Jean Pascal Planche, M/s.
Total Vinergy Bitumen India Pvt. Ltd.
12. “Role of Synthetic Fibres in CC Roads” by Shri
Rajiv Gauri M/s. Reliance.
13. “Trinidad Lake Asphalt and Application to Indian
Highway Industry (Technical Presentation with
some Economic Information)” by Mr. Deonariane
Sarabjit, M/s. Pavetech Consultants.
14. “Bitumen Stabilized Material and Soil Stabilisation”
by Shri Sanjay Bajaj, M/s. Wirtgen India Pvt. Ltd.
15. “Fiberglass Engineered Paving Mat-Mitigating
Reflective Cracking and Providing a Moisture
Barrier in Hot Mix Asphalt Overlayes” by Mr.
Mike Samueloff, M/s. Owens Corning India Ltd.
16. “PR Plast S/PR Plast Module” by Mr. Anud
Bourbon, M/s. Allianz Impex Marketing (I) Pvt.
Ltd.
17. “Cold Mix Methodology as an Alternative to
Hotmix in Rural Road Construction of Eastern
India” by Shri B.N. Mazumder, M/s. Bitchem
18. “Double Wall Corrugated (DWC) HDPE
Piping System for Non-Pressure (Gravity Flow)
Underground Sewerage/Drainage/Cross Drainage
(Culvert) Applications Related to Indian Roads”
by Shri T.K. Chattopadhyay, M/s. Alom Poly
Extrusions Ltd.
19. “Micro Seal Surfacing” by Shri S.K. Mehta, M/s.
Mehta Construction Group.
13
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
A Panel Discussion was held on “Use of Non-
Conventional Materials in Road Construction”. The
Panel Discussion Session was chaired by Shri Nirmaljit
Singh, Director General (Road Development) & Spl.
Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
The Panelists were Shri G. Sharan, Former Director
General (Road Development) & Spl. Secretary, Ministry
of Road Transport and Highways, Shri D.P. Gupta,
Former Director General (Road Development), MOST,
Prof. B.P. Chandrasekhar, Director (Tech.) NRRDA,
Shri A.K. Banerjee, Former Member (Technical),
NHAI, Shri A.D. Narain, Former Director General
& Addl. Secretary, MOST, Shri N.K. Sinha, Former
Director General (Road Development) & Spl. Secretary,
MOST, Shri C.R. Alimchandani, Managing Director,
Stup Consultants, Shri C.C. Bhattacharya, Former
Director General (Road Development), MOST, Shri
P.L. Bongirwar, Dr. U.K. Guru Vittal, Scientist, CRRI
and Col. M.S. Deol.
A view of the dais during Panel discussion on
“Use of Non-Conventional Materials in Road Construction”
The 70th Annual General Body meeting of the Indian
Roads Congress was held on 16 November, 2009
during which the following Council Members were
elected:
Rule 9-k (i) Six representatives of Associate Members
(from Private Sector):
1. Shri Sanjay Dalmia Jalnidhi Bitumen
Specialities Pvt. Ltd
2. Shri Sudhir Uppal Opal Paints Pvt. Ltd.
3. Col. (Retd.) V.K. Ganju Feed Back Venutres
4. Shri Swatantra Kumar AIMIL Ltd.
14
5. Shri Amarjit Singh AJS Scale Pvt. Ltd.
6. Shri Pratap S. Raizada Gammon India Ltd.
Rule 9-k (ii) Three representatives of Associate Members
(from Public Sector):
1. Shri Alok Kumar BRPNN Ltd., (Patna)
2. Shri J.B. Shrivastava BSRDC Ltd., Patna
3. Shri V. Krishnamurthy RITES (Gurgaon)
Rule 9–l One representative of Institutions primarily
engaged in Roads and Road Transport Research who
are Associate Members (from Public Sector/Private
Sector):
Dr. M.C. Jain Indian Oil Corporation
Ltd., R&D Centre Haryana
Rule 9-m One representative of Engineering Universities/
I.I.Ts/Engineering Colleges/Training Institutes who are
Associate Members:
Dr. Manoranjan Parida IIT, Roorkee
Rule 9-n One representative from Zilla Parishads,
District Boards, Panchayat Samitis, Panchayati
Raj Departments, Rural Development Department,
Rural Works Department and Rural Engineering
Organisations:
Shri H.T. Ray Jharkhand
Rule 9-o One representative from Members from
Municipalities, Improvement Trusts, Development
Authorities and Cantonment Engineers:
Shri S.K. Mandal KMC,(Kolkata)
Rule 9-q One representative from the Mechanical
Engineers:
Shri R.K. Saxena Uttar Pradesh
Rule 9-s Two representatives from Lady Members:
1. Miss Shobha Khanna Madhya Pradesh
2. Dr. Purnima Parida Delhi
Rule 9-p(i) The following ten members were elected as
Members of the Council by the General Body:
1. Shri R.P. Mandal Bihar
2. Shri B.B. Rampal Chandigarh
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
3. Shri Jaswant Singh Himachal Pradesh
4. Shri S.R.K. Singh Jharkhand
5. Shri M. Nagaraj Karnataka
6. Shri T.K. Georgekutty Kerala
7. Shri C.L. Verma Rajasthan
8. Shri Chinmay Debnath Tripura
9. Shri R.P. Sharma Uttar Pradesh
10. Shri Sankar Roy Choudhury West Bengal Chapter:1 Highway Planning, Design, Management,
Rule 9-p(ii) Two representatives below 35 years of
age:
1. Shri V. V. Thakar Maharashtra
2. Shri Gokul Agarwal West Bengal
As per the tradition, IRC honour its oldest members
during Annual General Body Meeting who are present.
Accordingly, Shri G.P. Lal (Roll No.1962) from the host
State, Bihar and Shri N.G. Vakharia (Roll No.2922) from
rest of country were honoured with the presentation of
a bouquet and shawl by Shri D.B. Deshpande, President
IRC during 70th Business Meeting.
Shri G.P. Lal, the Senior most member of the IRC being honoured
by Shri D.B. Deshpande, President, IRC, Extreme right is Shri R.P.
Indoria, Secretary General, IRC
Shri N.G. Vakharia, the Senior most member of the IRC being
honoured by Shri D.B. Deshpande, President, IRC
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, April 2010
Shri R.P. Indoria, Secretary General, IRC read out the
Resolution of Thanks at the end of the Business Meeting
which was approved by acclaim.
The General Report on Road Research Work done during
the year 2008-2009 in the country, compiled and printed
as Highway Research Record No.36, was discussed
under the Chairmanship of Dr. S. Gangopadhyay,
Director, CRRI. Heads of the various Departments of
CRRI presented the Report as under:
Performance Evaluation & Instrumentation’ by Dr.
B.K. Durai
Chapter: 2 ‘Pavement Engineering & Paving Materials’
by Dr. S.D. Sharma
Chapter:3 ‘Geotechnical Engineering’ by Dr. U.K.
Guruvittal
Chapter: 4 ‘Bridge Engineering’ by Dr. P. Lakshmi
Chapter: 5 ‘Traffic & Transportation’ by Dr. P. Parida
The following Presentations were made during this
Session:
‘Development of Cold Mix Technology for Bituminous
Pavement Construction’ by Dr. N.K.S. Pundhir
‘Experiences of Road Safety Audit Projects’ by Prof.
P.K Sarkar
Presentation by Dr. S. Velmurugan, Awardee of Pt.
Jawaharlal Nehru Birth Centenary Award 2009
The 190th Council Meeting of the IRC was held on the
17 November 2009 during the 70th Annual Session of
the IRC wherein the following Office Bearers of the
Indian Roads Congress for the next term were elected:
Shri Liansanga President, IRC
Shri Anand Selot Vice-President, IRC
Shri M.B. Bhalala Vice-President, IRC
Shri Ram Dhyan Ram Vice-President, IRC
Shri S.K. Dalmia Vice-President, IRC
The meeting of Secretaries, Engineers-in-Chief and
Chief Engineers from Central and State Government
Departments was also held on the 15 November 2009.
15
 HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 70TH ANNUAL SESSION
A view of the dais during 190th Council Meeting
Chief Engineers’ Meeting in progress
under the Chairmanship of Shri Nirmaljit Singh,
Director General (Road Development) & Special
Secretary, MORT&H and attended by Shri A.V. Sinha,
ADG and Chief Engineers, MORT&H, namely, Shri
S.N. Das, Shri C. Kandasamy, Shri Ashok Kumar, Shri
A.N. Dhodapkar and Shri Prabhakar, Deputy Secretary
16
(P&B), Secretaries/Es-in-C/Chief Engineers of various
State/UT Govt. and NHAI, BRO, NITHE, CRRI, etc.
Important issues deliberated in the meeting were as
under:
1. Safety audit of NH sections and identification of
accident black spots.
2. Identification of 15,000 km of NH stretches for
development to 2-lane NH standards with paved
shoulders under NHDP-Phase-IV and development
of Single Lane/Intermediate Lane NHs to 2-lane
standards, which are not covered under any
approved prgrammes.
3. Use of new materials, specifications and
technologies for NH works and Recycling of
Pavement materials.
4. Development of Wayside Amenities along NHs.
5. Installation of Route sings along Asian Highway
Network in the country.
6. Rationalization of numbering system of NHs.
7. Adoption of Corridor Approach for development
of NHs by State PWDs.
During the Session, the delegates visited the Technical
Exhibition, which was very impressively organized by
Bihar PWD in a spacious & decorated environment.
Latest products, services equipments and machinery
pertaining to Highway design, construction and
maintenance were exhibited there. 108 companies
participated in the exhibition.
The Cultural Programme Committee of the 70th Annual
Session, organized variety of cultural programmes
for entertainment of the delegates and their families
who rejoiced the evenings after the day’s long hectic
technical activities spread over different Sessions.
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, APRIL 2010