After Awadh Expressway fiasco, NHAI bars builder for 3 years

New Delhi: National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has barred the concessionaire of Kanpur-Lucknow Expressway, PNC Infratech, from bidding for any of its projects for three years, the maximum punishment as per contract conditions. The company’s share dipped by 20% on Tuesday after the company, in a regulatory filing, informed the BSE about the debarment by the highways authority.The expressway project known as Awadh expressway had developed major defects, including premature failures such as slippages within weeks of its inauguration. Officials had earlier said that the premature failures on sections of the expressway was due to design failure while adding that mere patchwork won’t be sufficient. Earlier, an investigation for NHAI by a Kharagpur IIT professor had recommended complete reconstruction of affected stretches.As per the company’s regulatory filing, NHAI issued the debarment letter on Sept 11.