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A useful book for construction professionals

International dimensions of the role and responsibility of Construction Professionals

Author: Dr. Haris Deen

Sri Lankan born construction professional Dr. Haris Deen has published a book on the important aspects of the role and responsibility of construction professionals.

Drawing from his across the board knowledge of contract law, wide experience in construction claims and matters related to arbitration and his extensive international exposure, Dr. Deen has produced a work that will be of interest to both students of contract law, instructors in quantity surveying, project and construction management and practising professionals in these fields.

The book titled "International Dimensions of the Role of Responsibility of Construction Professionals" deals with the law of contracts as applied in many countries such as the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Commencing with contractual relationships in depth, the book has interesting sections on duty of care and professional negligence, project managers' responsibility, role and responsibility of professionals in a construction contract and some aspects of the liabilities of all parties in a construction contract.

All sections have been supported by latest decided cases of the British and courts of justice of as many countries as were available at the time of writing.

Professional functions

All professionals have a duty of care in the discharge of their professional functions. The construction professional is not different.

He or she has the same responsibilities and professional liabilities in respect of duty of care and diligence as much as any other professional, towards the client or employer when charged with or assigned a function with his or her professional competence.

Clients or employers who pay for these services do expect such duty of care when they engage professional consultants to perform specific duties on their behalf. Therefore consultants who fail to extend such duty of care and diligence run the risk of being litigated against.

Dr. Deen's book deals with contractual relationships in the first instance. The basic requirements of offer, acceptance and consideration in the formation of contracts are dealt with supported by decided cases from various parts of the world in order to highlight the social, cultural and religious aspects that govern the formulation of laws in various countries.

The Middle East has been a hot bed of construction activity for sometime. However professionals, who venture into these parts from other parts of the world, including Sri Lanka, expect the same or similar legal systems they are familiar with, to prevail in these countries as well.

Such misconception is brought about by the fact that forms of contact used are mainly derived from FIDIC or the JCT forms.

However, resolution of disputes in many Arab Gulf States, are based on the provisions in their own legal systems. This book gives an insight into the legal systems prevailing in the Arab World, Malaysia and other Asian and South Asian countries, where details are available.

Duty of care that every professional has to exercise is extensively dealt with supported by case studies. Particular reference has been made to the project manager and his responsibilities, since more and more clients are now engaging the services of project managers.

These clients expect a high standard of service from their project managers. Similarly more and more professionals are offering project management services.

Therefore, it is important that they know the extent of their role and responsibilities and the liabilities should they fail to deliver.

The project managers' responsibility, the extent of his liability for actions of other members of the construction team and the project management team's liability to third parties are all well researched in the book.

The book concludes with a review of the consultant's responsibility as agents of the client and their general professional liability.

The book is expected to provide immense knowledge to students, practising construction professionals and all those connected with construction claims management and arbitration.

Dr. Haris Deen is an old boy of Zahira College, Colombo and son of the late Alhaj A. L. J. Deen of Maharagama.

e-government - what it is all about

Reviewed by Chandani Jayetilleke

e-government - From Vision to Implementation

(A practical guide with case studies)

by Subhash Bhatnagar

Published by Sage Publications - New Delhi ( www.indiasage.com )

The term e-government is of recent origin and there is no commonly accepted definition. The term is used in a loose manner to describe the legacy of any kind of use of information and communication technology within the public sector.

For those who see it as some form of extension of e-commerce to the domain of government, it represents the use of the Internet by government to deliver information and services.

Governments have been engaged in deploying information and communication technologies (ICTs) for several decades to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their functioning.

Hence, e-government is understood as the use of ICT to promote more efficient and cost-effective government, facilitate more convenient government services, allow greater public access to information and make government more accountable to citizens.

Traditionally the interaction between a citizen or business and a government agency took place in a government office. With emerging information and communication technologies it is possible to locate service centres closer to the clients.

Such centres may consist of an unattended kiosk in the government agency, a service kiosk located close to the client or the use of a personal computer in the home or office.

e-government applications normally evolve through a four stage process. The first stage includes the publication of information on a web site for citizens to seek knowledge about procedures governing the delivery of different services.

The second stage allows for interactivity on line. Clients can download applications for receiving services. The third stage involves electronic delivery of documents. The fourth stage results in electronic delivery of services where more than one department may be involved in processing a request or service.

A large number of developing countries from Asia and Latin America have implemented transaction-oriented e-government applications on a pilot basis. However only a few of these pilots have been replicated on a wider scale.

Taking all these facts into consideration, the author of this book, tries to define e-government in a more practical way.

According to Bhatnagar, e-government is about a process of reform in the way government works, shares information and delivers services to external and internal clients.

Specifically, e-government harnesses information technologies to transform relations with citizens, businesses and other arms of government.

These technologies can serve a variety of ends: better delivery of government services to citizens, improved interactions with business and industry, citizen's empowerment through access to information, or more efficient government management.

The resulting benefits can be less corruption, increased transparency, greater convenience, revenue growth and cost reductions.

Taking examples from various countries which have tried the e-government initiative, Bhatnagar makes an attempt to define the whole meaning of the e-government theme.

He says e-government is not a short cut to economic development, budget savings or clean, efficient government. it is also not the 'big bang', a single event that immediately and forever alters the universe of government.

It's a process and often a struggle that presents costs and risks, both financial and political. And the author warns if not properly implemented, it can be a waste of money, and resources.

The book provides practical insights for IT professionals, civil servants and managers from multilateral institutions interested in the implementation of e-government.

For a complete understanding of e-government, Bhatnagar's publication is a true source of information. It's well-written in a simple style and you need not have any IT knowledge to read through the pages at all.

Writer Subhash Bhatnagar has been a Professor of Information Systems at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) for the last 28 years. At present he divides his time between teaching and research at IIMA and leading an initiative on e-government at the World Bank.

Erudite exposition

The Art of Clinical Medicine

Author: Dr. S.D.K. Perera, Consulting Physician, Teaching Hospital, Ragama

321 pages with 250 pictures and CD-Rom colour demonstrations

Saraswathie Publishers, No. 2/60, Circular Road, Divulapitiya.

It is the duty of teachers of medicine to impart to students their experience in the practice of the art and science of clinical medicine.

This is of particular importance in an age where clinical medicine is threatened with extinction. Computerized laboratory investigations and sophisticated procedures are being widely used to make a diagnosis without a careful clinical examination.

It is much more satisfying to the clinician to make a diagnosis of a lung abscess or hypothyroidism on clinical history and examination and confirm this by appropriate investigatory procedures, rather than through the reverse.

Dr. Perera has made a determined effort to give the details of eliciting the history and physical signs and their interpretation, with illustrations and useful differential diagnoses.

This book should prove to be a useful aid to students who are now studying medicine and to those who wish to re-learn the art and science of clinical medicine.

He concludes by listing the complete investigatory procedures that need to be done in different clinical disorders.

A medical student who has the ambition to pursue clinical medicine to its logical conclusion must remember word by word Dr. Perera's accurate instructions. Judged from the little knowledge I possess of the vagaries of body and mind Dr. S.D.K. Perera's erudite exposition on clinical medicine merits commendation as it is a valuable contribution to the relevant field both here in Sri Lanka and in the international sphere.

- Prof. U.S. Jayawickrama

(M.D., F.R.C.P)

Fascinating stories

Memories on Life's Road

Author: Lorna de Mel

Memories on Life's Road by Lorna De Mel is a book full of fascinating, heart warming, hilarious and informative stories written on various subjects at different points in her life.

Though I have not seen nor met her personally before, when I started reading the book I just could picture this wonderful person in my mind.

A simple question crept into my mind: How could anyone be a cookie, barber, (that's how one of her sons used to describe her) a mom, a wife, a friend, a teacher you name all the professions under the sun in one person.

My doubts were cast away immediately after meeting up with her briefly. People of Lorna's aptitude is very hard to find and I say Thank You to her creator for giving life to someone like her so that in return she could be the lifeline to so may around her.

Memories on Life's Road is a compilation of articles of Lorna's which she contributed to various newspapers starting from 1982. Lorna mainly writes about her family, friends and relatives emphasizing the importance of having a good, healthy and a strong relationship with your loved ones around you.

Lorna's writing approach is simple and interesting, and all the incidents are true in her life. By reading Lorna's write-ups I gathered, what was said by Mahatma Gandhi it was for her simple living but high thinking.

High thinking in terms of lifting up, brightening up, or bringing hope and salvation to many around her and giving her best to her most dearly loved and cared family.

- Lakmani Setunga

www.ceylincoproperties.com

www.Pathmaconstruction.com

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