LUCKNOW, Jan. 26 -- The Uttar Pradesh planning department has prepared a proposal to engage premier technical institutes for third-party audits of major infrastructure projects valued over Rs 100 crore. The initiative, aimed at strengthening quality checks, will bring IIT-Kanpur, IIT-BHU, IIT-Delhi and IIT-Roorkee on board for auditing large-scale road, bridge and sewer projects. While audits were earlier conducted primarily for buildings, the scope now extends to other infrastructure ventures, officials familiar with the development said. Projects worth Rs 25-100 crore will be reviewed by state technical institutes, including Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology in Prayagraj and HBTU in Kanpur. Pawan Verma, chief engineer of the planning department, said the audit proposal has been prepared and discussions are underway with technical institutes. The proposal will be implemented soon. Third-party audit is an independent evaluation by an external agency to verify that infrastructure projects comply with technical specifications, safety codes and environmental standards. htc...