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Editors : Prof. S.V. RAMASWAMY & Er. I.V. ANIRUDHAN
CONTENTS

Earths Aquifers Promise …..

Personal Column

New Members

Activities During 2001-2003

Obituary

From the Editors Desk
Message From Chairman

Dear Members

I express my sincere thanks to all the members of our chapter for electing me as chairman of IGS-Chennai Chapter for the term September 2003 to August 2005. This chapter was started about fifteen years ago by the effort of eminent geotechnical personalities of Chennai with a handful of members. It has grown from strength to strength by the untiring efforts of my predecessors and unconditional support and cooperation from the members. This chapter currently has more than 800 members and enjoys the support of engineering institutions and professional organizations. It has grown steadfastly and contributed immensely to geotechnical community and bridges the gap between practicing engineers, researchers and academicians. I take this opportunity to put on record the unselfish efforts of our members for taking this chapter to a greater stride.

I am happy to inform you that the present team of office bearers is a blend of academicians, researchers, practicing engineers and government officials. This team is committed for hard work and will do their best to improve the activities of the chapter. At this juncture I solicit the cooperation, support and valuable suggestions from the members to strengthen the activities of the society.

Our secretary Mr. I.V.Anirudhan has developed a web site www.igschennai.org exclusively for our chapter. The web site of our chapter will be the fastest mode of communication among our members. I request all the members to communicate through our web site.

I appreciate the effort of office bears in bringing out the newsletter immediately after assuming the charge. I join our office bearers in requesting you to flood the newsletter with technical contributions. Please utilize the newsletter as another mode of communication to share your thoughts and ideas. I thank one and all and look forward to take this chapter to greater heights.

Prof. K. Ilamparuthi

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Proceedings of the AGM of 28.08.2003

The general body meeting of IGS, Chennai Chapter was convened at 5.00 PM on August 28, 2003 at Anna University to ratify the results of the election to the executive committee for the period Sept. 2003 to Aug. 2005. Dr. Ramaswamy, Chairman, presided over the meeting. Er. Elangovan welcomed the gathering and presented a brief report on the activities of the Chennai chapter during 2001 – 2003.

Then Dr. Ramaswamy announced the results of the election. The results were approved. Dr. Ramaswamy informed the general body that one more member has to be elected to the committee. Dr. Gandhi proposed the name of Er. V. Balakumar and it was seconded by Er. Anirudhan.

Dr. Ramaswamy then requested Prof. Ilamparuthi, the newly elected chairman to occupy the chair and conduct the proceedings.

Prof. Ilamparuthi acknowledged the tremendous efforts put in by previous committees in successfully organizing various programmes of the chapter. He expressed the hope that the senior members will continue to support the activities of the chapter. Er. Anirudhan gave an outline of the future activities and proposed a vote of thanks. A memento was presented to Mr. S. Jawahar, Highways Research Station in recognition of his valuable services in carrying out the activities of the chapter during 2001- 2003. ¤

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New Executive Committee from

September 2003-August 2005

1. Prof. K. Ilamparuthi - Chairman

2. Er. I.V. Anirudhan - Secretary

3. Prof. S.V. Ramaswamy

4. Prof. S.R. Gandhi

5. Dr. K. Premalatha

6. Er. M. Elangovan

7. Er. T. Samuel Thambu

8. Er. K. Rajamani

9. Dr. D. Thirunakkarasu

10. Mr. B.J.L.C. Nageswharan

11. Er. V. Balakumar

Co-opted Members

1. Mr. M. Bhaskaran

2. Dr. Kumar N Pitchumani

3. Dr. V.K. Stalin

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Welcome New Life Members

799 Mr. M.Suresh Kumar

800 Mr. S.Vishnuvardhan

801 Mr. K.Thangarasu

802 Ms. P.Ramya

803 Ms. R.Vidjeapriya

804 Mr. D.Aruldhas

805 Ms. M.E.Jai Kokila

806 Mr. S.Suresh Immenual

807 Mr. N.P. Naga Sridhar

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YEAR 2003 TERZAGHI LECTURE

FACTS & FICTION IN GEOTECHNICAL PRACTICE

DR. V.V.S. RAO

AT 4:30 PM ON OCTOBER 15, 2003

AT IIT MADRAS, CHENNAI

 

 

Special points of interest:

Terzaghi Lecture by Dr. V.V.S Rao on October 15, 2003 at IIT Chennai

Felicitation of Founder Members, Indian Geotechnical Society, Chennai Chapter, October 15, 2003.

Lateral Pile Load Tests—A Panel Discussion—November 2003 — Lead speaker -Dr. N. Kumar Pitchumani

Geotechnical Calendar

Short Term Course on Geotechnical Design for Infrastructure Projects, Geotechnical Engineering Division, IIT, Chennai, Dec. 1 – 12, 2003- Co-ordinator—Prof. S.R. Gandhi

28th Annual Conference on Deep Foundations October 22-24, 2003
Eden Roc Resort & Spa
Miami Beach, Florida

Indian Geotechnical Conference – 2003, Geotechnical Engineering for Infrastructural Development, Indian Geotechnical Society, Roorkee Chapter, Roorkee, Dec. 18 – 20, 2003.

Asian Regional Conference on Geosynthetics (GEOASIA 2004), South Korea, June 21 – 23, 2004.

The Seventh International Conference on the Application of Stresswave Theory to Piles –Malaysia – August 8-10, 2004 sec@iem.po.my

International Conference on Site Characterisation, Lisbon, Portugal, Sept. 20 – 22, 2004

Indian Geotechnical Conference – 2004, Ground Engineering – Emerging Techniques, Indian Geotechnical Societies, Warangal and Kakinada Chapters, Dec. 17 – 19, 2004.

Indian Geotechnical Conference – 2005, Indian Geotechnical Society, Ahmedabad Chapter, Ahmedabad, December 2005.

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Earth’s Aquifers Promise

Abundance of Water

Many areas in the world are headed towards a severe water shortage crisis due to burgeoning population and over taxed surface water supplies. But a number of hydro geologists and researchers estimate that as much as 99 percent of the world’s freshwater lies in vastly underutilized groundwater sources and that it may provide relief. An estimated 40000 km3 of fresh water is available in the Gurani aquifer under Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina and this is sufficient to meet the drinking water demands of the entire planet for the next 200 years. One of the first aquifers that have been utilized is the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer System, which lies beneath parts of Libya, Egypt and Sudan and is estimated to contain 542180 km3 of water. Libya recently completed a mammoth ground water transport system to transport 70 million m 3 of water to Benghazi and major coastal cities in Libya.

An international group of hydro geologists and researchers are now in the process of making a worldwide survey of earth’s ground water resources to enable optimal utilization of the aquifers. By mapping the boundaries of the aquifers and preparing case studies describing how some are being used the group expects to provide a detailed guide for countries about available ground water resources.

Many substantial aquifers in desert areas such as Rum-Saq Aquifer lying below Saudi Arabia and Jordan are not recharged at all. So careful planning is needed in using such aquifers. Another potential problem is due to the fact that numerous aquifers cross international boundaries. The Mountain aquifer, which extends beneath Israel and areas controlled by Palestinian Authority receives eighty percent of its water from rainstorms in Palestine. But most of its springs are in Israel. Hence it is important that international guidelines are established on how ground water should be accessed and shared.

Reference: Group Surveys Earth’s Aquifers, Civil Engineering, ASCE, June 2003, Vol. 73, No. 6, PP 15-16. ¤

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Personal Column

Prof. V.S. Raju (LM-54) retired as Professor, Ocean Engineering Centre, IIT, Madras. He is presently at Hyderabad.

Prof. M.R. Pranesh (LM-10) retired as Professor, Ocean Engineering Centre, IIT, Madras on June 30, 2003. He has taken up an assignment as Principal of a self financing Engineering College at Bangalore.

Mr. Bhaskaran (LM-59) retired from Geotechnical Laboratory at IIT Chennai

Mr. V. Balakumar (LM-55) visiting Norwegian Geotechnical Institute, Oslo, to present his paper on Raft Foundation during 6th International Seminar on Field Measurements in Geomechanics, September 15-18, 2003.

Prof. S.R. Gandhi (LM-13) and Prof. K. Rajagopal (LM-160) attended and presented their papers at 12th Asian Regional Conference held at Singapore on August 4-8, 2003.

Prof. S.R. Gandhi (LM-13 is attending 28th Annual Conference on Deep Foundations October 22-24, 2003, Eden Roc Resort & Spa Miami Beach, Florida. He is member of Technical Committees for Driven Piles and Marine structures at DFI.

Er. P. Nirmala (LM– 206) celebrated her marriage on June 18, 2003. Our Congratulations and Best Wishes for a Happy Married Life.

Er. P. Thangarasu (LM-801) assumed charge as Director, Highways Research Station, Government of Tamilnadu.

Dr. D. Thirunakkarasu (LM-117) retired as Deputy Director, Highways Research Station on August 31, 2003.

Er. D. Shankaragururaman (LM-721) retired as Scientist-E, Division of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University on July 31,2003.

Members are requested to write to the society about their activities and other personal achievements. Members may please send their email ID for better communication.¤

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Obituary

Mr. K.B. Uppal, Director of AIMIL. Ltd., passed away in the United States of America on 23rd July 2003. He started his career with AIMIL in February 1966 and progressed to the position of Director in 1976, spearheading the export Division of the group.

He worked virtually with every product group in the company and finally as the “Reinforced Earth” man as head of Reinforced Earth Division, AIMIL. Ltd. Mr. Uppal was twice Vice President of Indian Roads Congress. He also chaired the exhibition committee at the ICSFME, New Delhi.

The Indian Geotechnical Society (Chennai Chapter) expresses its heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family and AIMIL.

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Proceedings & Manual for sale

Cost

Postal

Proceedings, Indian Geotechnical Conference 1996 “Geotechnical Engineering practice beyond 2001”.

Rs. 500

Rs. 78

Proceedings one day seminar on “Bored cast-in-situ piles experiences in design and construction”. Indian Geotechnical Society (Chennai Chapter).

Rs. 100

Rs. 33

Proceedings one day seminar on “Current trends in environmental geotechniques”. Indian Geotechnical Society (Chennai Chapter).

Rs. 100

Rs. 33

Manual – “Lateritic Soils in Engineering practice”. Indian Geotechnical Society (Chennai Chapter).

Rs. 50

Rs. 33

Proceedings one day seminar on “Recent trends on application of geosynthetics” Indian Geotechnical Society (Chennai Chapter).

Rs. 100

Rs. 33

LATERAL LOAD TESTS—A PANEL DISCUSSION will be held in the third week of November 2003.

Lead Speaker - Dr. Kumar Pitchumani , L& T Ramboll, Chennai

The issues under review

  1. Whether the single test pile can be made truly fixed during the test?

  2. How do we arrive at a safe lateral load for a specific lateral displacement under fixed head condition from the load test results on free head condition?

  3. What is the order of under estimation of the lateral capacity if the differences in fixed and free head conditions are not incorporated in the analysis?

  4. What are the conditions at which a working pile is truly fixed?

  5. Can we resolve to arrive at the stiffness of the pile-soil system under laterally loaded condition from the load tests (under free head condition) and also to arrive at the relation between allowable load and deflection for partially fixed and fully fixed conditions?

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Activities During 2001 - 2003

LECTURES

1. Prof. K. Muthukrishnaiah, I.I.T., Chennai , “ A Case Study of Lime Slurry Injection to Improve Bearing Capacity of Soil under a New Building” on 18 .05.2001.

2. Dr. N. Kumar Pitchumani, Project Consultant, L&T Romboll consulting Engineers Ltd., Chennai, “Ohm Mapper Survey for Detecting Rock” on 20.07.2001.

3 Mr. S. Piouslin Vethakkan, formerly Senior Roads Engineer, Pavement Management System, Botswana, “System Approach in Infrastructure Management – Botswana Experience” on 20.08.2001.

4. Dr. K. L. Pujar, United Foundations (P) Ltd., Chennai , “Pile Driving and Environmental Issues” on 19.10.2001.

5. Mr. M. Elangovan, Deputy Director (Soils), Highways Research Station, “IRC 37 – 2001 – Design of Flexible Pavement – A Critical Appraisal” on 21.11.2001.

6. Prof. K. Ilamparuthi, Head, Division of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University, “Centrifuge- Modelling in Geotechnical Engineering” on 13.12.2001.

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7. Mr. D. Shankaragururaman, Scientist-E, Division of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University, “GIS Application in Geotechnical Engineering” on 23.01.2002.

8. Dr. V.K. Stalin, Assistant Professor, Division of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University, “Effect of Pollutants on the Engineering Behaviour of Soils & Remedial Measures” on 21.03.2002.

9. Prof. R. Srinivasaraghavan, Head of Civil Engineering Department, Crescent Engineering College, Chennai , “Soft Ground Technology – A Peep into the Problem and its Solutions” on 23.04.2002.

10. Dr. Manoj Verman, Advanced Technology & Engineering Services, Division of AIMIL Ltd., New Delhi, “Pile Integrity Test” on 28.05.2002.

11. Prof. S. Boominathan, (Rtd) Division of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University, “Soil – Compaction Effect on Dynamics of Cricket Pitch” on 19.06.2002.

12. Dr. R. K.Bhandari, Former Director, Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee, Chairman, CDMM, “The Decaying Romance with Soil Mechanics” on 15.07.2002.

13. Prof. A. Sargunan, (Rtd) Division of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Anna University, Terzaghi Lecture ‘Terzaghi and His Terra Firma’ on 4-10-2002.

14. Mr.C.L.Ramakrishnan, Director General of Police (Rtd), Chennai, “Internal Harmony” on 18.12.2002

15. Mr. N. Rajamane, Assistant Director, Structural Engineering Research Centre, Chennai. “High Performance Concrete Materials, Characteristics & Applications’ on 29.04.2003.

16. Michal Sejnoha, Associate Professor, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Czech Technical University, “A Modern Approach to the Design of Earth Structures with Finite Elements’ on 16.05.2003.

17. Dr. Muthu Subramaniam, Professor of Civil Engineering, Alabama, A & M University, USA, ‘Highway Sub-surface Drainage—Recent Trends’ on 10.07.2003.

18. Er. Murali Iyengar, Executive Director (Rtd), Engineers India Limited, New Delhi, ‘Some Aspects of Under Ground Storage of Oil and Gas’ on 24.07.2003

WORKSHOP AND SEMINAR:

IGS Chennai Chapter in collaboration with Indian Concrete Institute has conducted a One-day workshop on “ Durable concrete structures (IS 456 – 2000)”– on 05.01.2002.

One day seminar on “ Recent Trends on Application of Geosynthetics” was held on 15.02.2002 at Hotel GRT Grand Days,

T.Nagar, Chennai - 600 017 under the co-ordination of

Er.M.Elangovan ¤

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Er. Murali Iyengar, Executive Director (Rtd), Engineers India Limited, New Delhi, speaks on ‘Some Aspects of Under Ground Storage of Oil and Gas’ on 24.07.2003.

 

Marundheeswarar temple tank. Thiruvanmiyur ,Chennai

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From the Editor’s Desk.. Restoration of Temple Tanks

There is a revival of interest in the restoration of temple tanks within Chennai

city. There are reports that efforts have been made to divert surface runoff due to rainwater from the surrounding areas to the tanks with the expectation that they can store the rainwater and maintain the ground water levels in the surrounding areas. However there is an essential difference between irrigation tanks in the countryside and the temple tanks. In irrigation tanks water is retained by earthen bunds and the level of water in the tank is higher than the surrounding ground level to enable water to flow into the fields for irrigation. There is generally a source for water supply such as a stream or overflow channel from another tank. But the water level in temple tanks will be much lower than the surrounding ground level and will be approximately the same as the ground water level in the adjacent areas. Their major source of water for the temple tanks is the rainwater seeping from the ground surrounding the tank. The infiltration through the soil purifies the water. During the rainy season the temple tanks will be full and there will be flow from the tank to the adjacent ground. But during dry season the flow will be from surrounding areas maintains the water level in the temple tank. Hence it is essential that the ground water level should be higher than the bed level of temple tanks for their effective functioning.

If water levels in the temple tanks are to be maintained, it is imperative that the ground water levels in the surrounding areas are maintained above the water levels in the temple tanks. This can be achieved only by strict monitoring by the community or the government. There is also a definite need on the part of the residents to exercise self- discipline in using ground water. Indiscriminate pumping of ground water has resulted in the drying of temple tanks in residential areas like Mylapore and Triplicane. The recharge due to rainfall has also dwindled in these areas.
 

 Temple tanks in commercial areas where withdrawal of groundwater is much less, are still functional. It is evident that the withdrawal is more significant than reduction in recharge in the drying of temple tanks.

Allowing directly the surface run-off due to rainfall in surrounding areas into the tank will be harmful in the long run. There will be accumulation of the waste material in the tank from the discharge from the various business and residential establishments. Since the water is stagnant there is no possibility of purification of water in the tank. In a couple of years the water may pose a hazard to the health of the locality.

It is also very important to consider the economic implications since it will be the overriding factor in any policymaking decision. A number of dried up temple tanks are located in residential and built-up areas. Maintaining it as temple tank will entail a substantial capital expenditure in building tall, surrounding compound walls and recurring expenditure in protecting the tank from vandalism, misuse and pollution. In a crowded locality maintaining it will be a herculean task. But then it is difficult to quantify the worth of intangible benefits such as celebrating the ‘teppam’ festival and the mental satisfaction of a devotee using the tank for purification before entering the temple. ¤TOP