STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Sleuths of the State Vigilance Organisation (SVO) on Tuesday arrested a Superintending Engineer, PWD (R&B) and two Executive Engineers (XENs) for their involvement in illegal allotments of construction of bridges at exorbitant rates in Udhampur district during 2012-13.
The job work was allotted at a much higher cost of Rs 92.75 lakhs than the advertised cost of Rs 81.70 lakhs and subsequently allotted remaining works of Rs 177.28 lakhs without calling tenders.
Director SVO Munir Khan said, ” FIR 6/17 was registered against D D Gorkha, the then Superintending Engineer, PWD(R&B) Circle, Udhampur, P.S Sehgal the then Superintending Engineer, PWD (R&B) Reasi-Udhampur, Circle, A.K Gandotra, the then Executive Engineer PWD(R&B) Division, Udhampur and V.K Sharma, the then Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Division,Udhampur for committing and gross violations in allotment work to blue eyed contractors”.
“The trio has been arrested today afternoon in simultaneous raids conducted by SVO sleuths while XEn V.K Sharma has managed to go under-ground,” said IGP Munir Khan.
The construction of abutments (left & right) for 41.50 mts clear span motorable bridge on Thalora Sartari Road (at Dugee Khad) including construction of approaches was allotted at a much higher cost of Rs 92.75 lakhs than the advertised cost of Rs 81.70 lakhs in which only two contractors Ashok Kumar and Harminder Singh participated.
Superintending Engineer PWD (R&B) Circle, Udhampur D D Gorkha instead of re-tendering the work, in order to ensure fair competition, allotted the work to their blue eyed contractors.
The accused Superintending Engineer and Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Division Udhampur in league with each other subsequently allotted remaining works of Rs 177.28 lakhs without calling tenders. However, in order to cover up their illegal acts, they accorded three post facto approvals for Rs 60 lakhs, Rs 42.08 lakhs and Rs 60 lakhs. Besides one additional work order of Rs. 15.20 against the said work was allotted to the same contractor. The verification revealed that the accused officers/officials had grossly exceeded their monetary limit.
The SVO verification has also revealed that the other tendered work namely dismantling of existing 41.50 mtr steel grid motorable bridge over Khu nallah on Udhampur Ramnagar road and its re-launching on Thalora Sartari road over Dugee Khad including laying of RCC bed plates and deck slab was also allotted at a higher cost of Rs 28.01 lakhs against an advertized cost of Rs 22 lakhs in which only above said blue eyed two contractors participated and work was allotted to contractor Harminder Singh by Executive Engineer PWD (R&B) Division Udhampur. No rate analysis had been done by these officials to arrive at the reasonability of rates thus making all the allowed rates doubtful.
