Justice B Pugalendhi issued the direction while hearing a petition filed by P Thavaneethi, a quality control assistant engineer in the department. Thavaneethi challenged a charge memo issued on June 23, 2026, which held him responsible for substandard roads constructed on six stretches covering 198 km of State Highways and 360 km of major district roads in Sivagangai district.
The petitioner referred to a government order issued on December 24, 2010, which sets out a three-level system for fixing responsibility when road works are not properly executed. Under the order, field-level officers are assigned responsibility at the first level, quality control officers at the second level and supervising officers at the third level. Thavaneethi alleged that he had been selectively targeted in the case.
The court noted that it had earlier sought clarifications from the highways department about action taken against officials responsible for similar lapses. However, the status report submitted by the department was considered vague and did not address the questions raised by the court. During the hearing, the judge also found that the complete text of the 2010 order was unavailable on the department’s website.
The department has been directed to explain why the order was not uploaded and to detail the steps taken to implement it. The court has further sought information on action against first-, second- and third-level officers under the order. The case has been adjourned to September 28, when the department is expected to submit its response.