‘Steel slag road technology a boon to Border Roads Organisation’

 OUR CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR: Niti Aayog member Dr V K Saraswat said Monday that CSIR-CRRI steel slag road technology will be a boon to the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), which will build long-lasting heavy-duty roads in strategic border areas. Dr Saraswat said this after inspecting the one-kilometre stretch of Joram-Koloriang steel slag road, built by BRO in Arunachal Pradesh, along with a team from the CSIR-Central Road Research Institute, BRO, Tata Steel, and Lower Subansiri DC Bamin Nime.

Dr. Saraswat emphasized using alternative road materials like processed steel slag aggregates in place of natural aggregates for road construction to conserve ecology and mountainous topography in hilly states like Arunachal Pradesh. He informed us that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had appreciated this road project and complimented all stakeholders involved in its implementation. The 1-km steel slag road section is constructed by BRO’s Project Arunanak Division under the CSIR-Central Road Research Institute, New Delhi, using processed steel slag aggregates supplied by TATA Steel's Jamshedpur plant.

Around 1200 MT of processed steel slag aggregates were transported from Jamshedpur to Itanagar through the railway, and then from Itanagar to the project site near Ziro in Lower Subansiri district by road. The Central Road Research Institute's Principal Scientist and inventor of steel slag road technology, Dr Satish Pandey, informed that a waste product of steel manufacturing units called steel slag is utilized in the form of processed steel slag aggregates to construct 40 mm thick bituminous surfacing on the BRO stretch.

Steel slag bituminous surfacing, due to its inherent high strength and stiffness, will offer a more durable heavy-duty road surface in the face of inclement weather conditions in the region, he added. Project Arunank Chief Engineer Brig A. S. Kanwar highlighted the various technological initiatives of BRO across various border states, including Arunachal Pradesh. He reiterated that it was the initiative of BRO Director General Lieutenant General Rajeev Chaudhry to introduce environment-friendly new technologies, and the use of steel slag for road construction was taken up under the aegis of Niti Aayog as an inter-ministerial collaboration task between the Ministries of Defence, Science and Technology, Steel, and Indian Railways.

Dr. Saraswat lauded the BRO for their pathbreaking work in the service of the nation in extremely difficult terrain and weather conditions. He also appreciated the collaborative initiatives between the BRO, CRRI-CSIR, Indian Railway, and Tata Steel to produce wealth from waste, in line with the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convert waste to wealth.

CRRI Director Dr Manoranjan Parida informed that under CSIR-CRRI technological guidance, steel slag road technology is well tested in multiple projects across India.

CSIR-CRRI built the first steel slag road at Hazira in Surat, the second at NH-33 Jamshedpur, and the third steel slag road was recently completed at NH-66 Mumbai to Goa Highway in Maharashtra. He further informed that CSIR-CRRI is working with leading steel companies, including AMNS India, TATA Steel, JSW Steel, and RINL. TATA Steel EIC IBMD Division Dasgupta reiterated TATA Steel’s commitment to support the green initiative through all possible means to strengthen strategic roads in the country through such public-private partnerships. The pilot project steel slag road at Joram Koloriang Road was executed by 119 RCC of 756 BRTF under Project Arunank, with Roshan Kumar as the officer commanding.

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