Experts met at a seminar organised by the Civil Engineering Division of the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh on Monday to analyse the pros and cons of the use of asphalt in building pavements and roads in the country. The highly technical aspects to the construction of durable roads and pavements were discussed and emphasised at the seminar. According to the findings of an expert, cracks in road pavement structures mainly occurred due to deficiencies in design, supervision and lack of proper quality control in asphalt. His remarks that mandatory criteria tests for 'retained strength stability are not done in most cases' call for immediate attention of the authorities concerned so that all such constructions conform to set standards.

The expert pointed his finger at the basic flaws which cause 'stripping of flexible pavement roads' and suggested use of cement as filler to ensure a durable design life. In fact, the malaise of poor quality materials used together with substandard supervision during construction of roads and pavements in Bangladesh drains away a huge amount of public money every year. Dishonesty in procurement of construction materials, awarding contracts to inexperienced and unworthy firms are too common in our context. We would strongly support the plea for properly manning the research wing of the Road Research Laboratory as part of an effective construction-cum-maintenance strategy. This will help minimise the annual maintenance cost by improving quality-control in the choice of road construction materials.