Functions of Officers of PWD

Functions of Officers of PWD (Public Works Department)

Services of Public Works Department:

The district administrators, head of departments, municipal organizations whenever require to executive construction projects, seek the services of Public Works Department. The PWD officers either independently or by becoming the members of the constituted committees for construction works; helps the organizations in their construction works. Such deployment of Executive Engineers (XENs) is usually done after seeking the permission of Engineer-in-Chief (EIC) and the department charges the organizations for the services of the engineers. The District Administration undertakes the works from PWD officers with giving written orders and the same is also communicated with the EIC. Apart from construction works, the officers of Public Works Department may also be connected for consultancy services including inspection of roads, buildings, irrigation works etc. The consultancy charges, inspection fees are charged as per the records at upper level i.e. through Administrative Secretaries of the concerned department. The Public Works Department is considered as approved source and without No Objection Certificate (NoC) from the PWD, the construction works cannot be assigned or completed from the contractors available in open market.

Records Management:

Like other government organizations, the Public Works Department also maintains the records in systematic way at all locations. The records are weeded out as per records retention schedule applicable on government organizations. In case of old records which cannot be destroyed and considered as valuable records, such records are transferred to the department of archives.

How the Public Works Department Functions?

The EIC prepares an annual plan of action and conveys the same to all chief engineers working under his supervision for effective implementation of the plan. According to annual plan, the budget is proposed to the finance department by the Budget Controlling Authority (BCA) i.e. Engineer-in-Chief (EIC). The EIC delegates powers to the Chief Engineers and the Chief Engineers delegates powers to the Superintending Engineers located at various field offices for smooth conduct of the works. The status of each work is monitored through Geographical Information System (GIS) and Management Information System (MIS). The procurement of goods and services is done through e-tendering and Government e-Marketplace (GeM). Assets and stores are maintained and subject to audit on annual basis. In order to ensure proper compliance of financial rules in maintenance of assets and stores, utilization of funds, each divisional office has an officer known as Divisional Accounts Officer (DAO). The DAO ensures the compilation of records with Accountant General’s records with are derived from the treasuries department. Every year the EIC prepares an Annual Administration Report (AAR) and send the same to the state government. The functions of each officer are detailed in the code of the Public Works Department available on the website of the department.

Detailed Project Report:

The PWD Engineers are usually contacted by the organizations to prepare Detailed Project Report (DPR) of roads, buildings, water projects, irrigation projects etc. The project is assessed technically and financially and first of all, feasibility study is carried out to determine whether the project is worth enough to execute or not. Secondly, a preliminary project report (PPR) is prepared stating general activities to be carried out in a particular project. Thereafter, detailed project report (DPR) is prepared with all activities to be carried out in the project. The preparation requires surveys of the work, estimation of each activity to be carried out for effective execution of the project.

Contracts of Public Works Department:

The department engaged the contractors either by making lump sum payment for various types of activities to be carried out in a project or through other modes like Turnkey contracts, Build-Operate and Transfer (BOT) contracts, Build-Operate-Own and Transfer (BOOT) contracts, or Operate-Maintain and Transfer (OMT) contracts. In lump sum contact, the contractor is responsible for doing all the activities detailed in the contract in lieu of a consideration. In Turnkey contact, the contractor is responsible firstly to survey and investigate the site, prepare the design of the work, do engineering and construction activities, and commissioning of the project. In BOT contract, the contractor firstly builds and operate the work including bridges, flyovers, bypasses, roads etc. and then transfer its ownership after a specific period of time to the Government. During the period before the transfer of ownership, the contractor is allowed to recover the cost and reward of his function in the form of toll charges to be collected from the users. In BOOT contract, the contractor is also allowed to own the assets of the work for a specified time period. In OMT contract, the construction work is firstly carried out by the government thereafter the operation and maintenance is under the contractor. (Continued to... How PWD Works?)

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