The Moral Vision
Ethics and Technology
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ETHICS AND TECHNOLOGY
Soon after the completion of a multi-storeyed
building called Akashdeep in Bombay, the whole
construction collapsed. The engineers said that the
reason for its collapse was that less cement had
been used than specified by safety regulations.
In another statement the director of a technical
institute said, “RCC construction is a scientific
process which is excellent in the hands of qualified
and experienced people, but dangerous if managed
by incompetent engineers and contractors.”
The
Times of India,
4 September 1983)
This appears to be the correct and proper
explanation of the matter, but if we really think
about the word ‘incompetent’ as applied to the
engineers and contractors concerned, we realize
that it needs to be replaced by the more appropriate
word ‘corrupt’. The truth is that such problems in
this country are traceable to excessive greed and
corruption, and not to a lack of technical expertise.
The Bhakra Dam being a major government project,
the services of the top engineers were obtained for
