New Delhi, May 18 (IANS): To enhance development on the borders, the government on Monday approved implementation of the Committee of Experts' recommendation to outsource road construction work beyond optimal capacity of Border Roads Organisation (BRO).

The Ministry of Defence said that the government has accepted and implemented three important recommendations of Committee of Experts (CoE) under the chairmanship of Lt General D.B. Shekatkar (Retd) relating to border infrastructure.

These were related to speeding up road construction, leading to socio economic development in the border areas.

"On the matter related to creating border infrastructure, the government has implemented recommendation of Committee of Experts to outsource road construction work beyond optimal capacity of BRO," the ministry said.

It has been made mandatory to adopt Engineering Procurement Contract (EPC) mode for execution of all works costing more than Rs 100 crore.

The other recommendation relating to introduction of modern construction plants, equipment and machinery has been implemented by delegating enhanced procurement powers from Rs 7.5 crore to Rs 100 crore to BRO, for domestic and foreign procurements.

"Border Roads Organisation has recently inducted Hot-Mix Plant 20/30 TPH for speedier laying of roads, remote operated hydraulic Rock Drills DC-400 R for hard rock cutting, a range of F-90 series of self-propelled snow-cutters/blowers for speedier snow clearance," the ministry said.

It also stated that new technology like blasting technology for precision blasting, use of geo-textiles for soil stabilisation, cementitious base for pavements, plastic coated aggregates for surfacing, is also being used to enhance the pace of construction.

With the empowerment of field officers through enhanced delegation of financial and administrative powers, there has been significant improvement in faster financial closure of works, the ministry said in a statement.

Further, the ministry also pointed out that the land acquisition and all statutory clearances like forest and environmental clearance are also made part of approval of Detailed Project Report (DPR).

The ministry pointed that with the adoption of Engineering Procurement Contract mode of execution, it is mandatory to award work only when 90 per cent of the statutory clearances have been obtained, implementing the recommendation of Committee of Experts regarding obtaining prior clearances before the commencement of the project.