Well knit mafia operational in PWD Harsh urges CM to save R&B Deptt from further loot, plunder

 STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Hailing the Govt. of India for approval of Rs. 613 crore to the State Govt. for infrastructure development in the R&B sector, Chairman JKNPP and former Minister, Harsh Dev Singh urged upon the Chief Minister to personally intervene to ensure the proper utilization of the sanctioned funds in view of the said department having earned the dubious distinction and most obnoxious notoriety of omissions and commissions, leakages and irregularities.
Harsh said that loot and plunder of public resources has been a common feature particularly in the R&B (PWD) Deptt with the helmsman giving tall slogans of curbing the menace but regretfully the sore continues to fester. He said that only recently an RTI activist had exposed the biggest scandal pertaining to withdrawal of Rs. 200 crore by the officers of PWD Deptt through self-cheques at the fag-end of the financial year in brazen violation of all financial norms and procedures. He said that even during the last two months hundreds of crores were drawn and plundered through fictitious bills on the pretext of flood damages, disaster management, slip clearance, repairs and renovation etc by throwing the codal formalities to winds in the name of emergency nature of the works.
Expressing the grave concern over the massive pilferage of R&B funds and blatant circumvention of codal procedures, Harsh urged upon the govt. to activate and strengthen its surveillance mechanism so as to prevent the loot and plunder of public funds envisaged for creation of physical infrastructure in the state.
He regretted that construction and renovation works were being executed departmentally by the R&B and PHE Deptts in utter violation of regulations laid down in ‘Financial code’, ‘Book of Financial Powers’ and ‘Public Works Accounts Code’ and process of tendering of works continued to be evaded for extraneous considerations. He said that matter regarding violations of codal procedures was raked up numerous times in the successive sessions of the previous legislative Assembly but no action was ever initiated against the delinquents despite repeated assurances given by the then Ministers and higher authorities.
Expressing concern over the recent disclosure made in the media regarding withdrawal of around Rs. 200 cr through self cheques at the fag-end of previous year for works executed without following codal provisions, Singh regretted that the issue was not only thrown under the carpet but the govt. had failed to check the acts of omissions and commissions being still conducted in the PWD with impunity. Reminding the govt. of its rhetorical overtures on curbing corruption and checking malpractices, he said that a good beginning could have been made by initiating action in the Rs. 200 cr scam in which self cheques have been issued for withdrawal of hefty amounts ranging from Rs. 10 to 50 lakh. He said that besides defiance of the legal provisions contained in the laws relating to fiscal conduct, the Govt. order bearing No. 161-F of 2007 dated 16th May 2007 has also been violated with impunity and continues to be circumvented as on date without any check whatsoever. He said that statistics provided by the ‘Directorate of Accounts and Treasuries indicated that 40 per cent of the total budget allocated to Engineering Deptts during the previous financial year was withdrawn during the month of March alone as compared to the rest of the year. He said that the same position was being replicated in the current financial year with a deep rooted and well knit mafia operational in the system facilitating the mischievous bargains.
Harsh said that though during the last two months the GOI funding for R&B sector has reached to Rs 960 cr including earlier sanction of Rs. 613 cr but the state govt. had failed to initiate the preliminary holding of basic surveys, preparation of DPRs and tendering of the approved works. He regretted that rather than concentrating on planning and execution, the concerned authorities were busy in scheming the placement of their favorites at the plum postings and prompting bids for new postings.