Faulty design behind Manipal incident

A preliminary report of a team of engineers has concluded that faulty design could be the cause behind the collapse of Manipal Teaching Hospital building in Pokhara.

Making public the preliminary report Saturday, engineers Suresh Pokhrel, Bharat Mandal and Surhid Kumar Sharma ruled out the claim of the hospital management that rain caused of the accident.

Pokhrel said that design deficiency could be one the causes of the collapse, adding, "Faulty construction, including improper material, workmanship, supervision and quality control could not be ruled out as causes of the accident. "

"We found that there had been no maintenance conducted in the last five years," he added.

They complained that the hospital management did not allow them proper access to the hospital and also did not available the design drawing.

They suggested separate codes of conduct needed to be announced for public and private constructions and Engineering Council and Engineering Association be consulted when construction contracts are given to foreign companies. nepalnews.com pb Oct 30 05

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