ETHICS AND TECHNOLOGY

Ethics and Technology ~ 292 ~ 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