All about Navayuga Engineering Company, makers of the Silkyara tunnel where 41 workers were stuck

Navayuga Engineering Company that was constructing the Silkyara tunnel, under National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), will reportedly foot the bill of the expenses incurred in the rescue of the 41 workers who were stuck inside the collapsed tunnel for 17 days. Multiple agencies worked tirelessly round the clock for days to rescue the workers. 

NHIDCL director (administration and finance) Anshu Manish Khalkho told Times of India that they are yet to calculate the overall cost but confirmed that the bill will go to Navayuga. 

A part of the tunnel collapsed after a landslide, after which the workers were stuck inside. The tunnel is part of the Char Dham all-weather accessibility project.

A couple of months before the Silkyara incident, 20 people including two site engineers and 12 workers were crushed to death after a girder launching machine collapsed on them. They were constructing a viaduct on the Samruddhi Expressway in Thane, under Navayuga. Shahapur police registered a case against two contractors of the company who were engaged in the work. The 2.28 km-long viaduct was being constructed by Navayuga, and Singapore-based VSL India.

Navayuga projects

But the Silkyara-Barkot tunnel, constructed at a cost of Rs 853.8 crore to connect Gangotri and Yamunotri is not the only major project for Nayayuga. The flagship company of the Navayuga Group, helmed by Chairman CV Rao, has been in existence for three decades. The company has been responsible for some iconic and large projects such as the construction of India’s longest bridge, Dhola-Sadia, spanning over 9.15 km over the Brahmaputra river, the Sundilla barrage, the Narmada-Malwa Gambhir Link Project, the Dibang-Lohit River Management System, the Gangapath Project, a high-speed corridor along the banks of Ganga river, and the Ganga Bridge connecting Bhaktiyarpur and Tajpur in Bihar.

The Dhola-Sadia Bridge linking Dhola and Sadia in Assam’s Tinsukia district is strategic for its proximity to the border state of Arunachal Pradesh. The bridge does not only provide an all-weather access for civilian transportation, it is als constructed to withstand army mobilisation capabilities and troops movement. 

The Sundilla barrage aka the Kaleshwaram Project is the redesigning of the Pranahita Chevalla Lift Irrigation Scheme to supply water to the drought-prone regions of Telangana. It irrigates about 18.25 lakh acres of new ayacut and stabilising 18.82 lakh acres, amounting to a total of 37.07 lakh acres. The project includes three barrages. 

The Narmada-Malwa Gambhir Link Project supplies irrigation water to 50,000 hectares of land, through a pressurized piped distribution network, while the Dibang-Lohit River Management System, spread across 17.4 km, manages 11 tributaries and their diverse paths. 

Navayuga’s books

Navayuga's core business is civil construction and infrastructure development. As of December 31, 2021, its order book stood at Rs Rs 22,651.58 crore, which is 6.28x of the gross billing activity level of FY21. According to a CareEdge report, the order book is spread across a number of states, including Andhra Pradesh that constituted 25 per cent of the total order book, followed by Maharashtra and Telangana. 

Moreover, the order book also has diversified segments including roads, bridges and tunnels. 

Navayuga’s CBI case

Navayuga Chairman CV Rao was questioned by CBI in connection with YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s disproportionate assets case in 2012. The case involved Nimmagadda Prasad-owned Matrix Enport selling huge stakes in Vanpic Ports to Navayuga Engineering Company without informing the state government and in violation of the initial Memorandum of Understanding. 

The CBI accused Navayuga of gaining control of the project without going through the open competitive bidding process. The government sent a notice to Vanpic Ports asking why it onboarded Navayuga on board without permission. 

Also read: Uttarakhand  tunnel collapse: All eyes on Hyderabad-based Navayuga Engineering