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| Tainted officials unnerved as Guv seeks reports of scams | | |
Ishtiyaq Ahmad
Early Times Report
Srinagar, June 24: As the Governor rule has unnerved the tainted officials, authorities of several departments have been directed to look into wrong doings that surfaced over the years and culprits were being shielded by politicians.
Since the Governor rule has been imposed, N N Vohra has held several meetings and directed officials to ensure transparency. Sources said that Vohra has also sought the reports about various wrong doings that surfaced over the years.
"Once any scam have been coming to the fore, it was because of political intervention that culprits were being shielded. Instead the probe reports were gathering dust. Now all these files will be opened again," an official of the General Administration Department.
There have been scams in several scams in various departments, whose fate is still unknown.
Like in Housing and Urban Development Department, an audit report of the Accountant General has exposed the "mismanagement".
The Executive Engineer ULB division II Jammu took up the construction of community centres Batote and Banihal at an estimated cost of Rs 45.36 lakh.
However, the report says that audit noticed in January 2017 that after incurring the expenditure of Rs 24.60 lakh, the construction works were abandoned due to non-availability of land and funds. "It resulted in wasteful expenditure of Rs 24.60 lakh besides denial of benefits to the envisaged population of the area," the report reads.
In March 2015, Urban Environment Engineering Department allotted a contract to a firm for design and construction of 1.20 MLD sewerage treatment plant at Patnitop at a cost of Rs 11.60 crore. The scheme was proposed to be completed within two years.
The report however has said that scrutiny of records revealed that the firm was given mobilization advance of Rs 58 lakh and consultation fees of Rs 21.90 lakh.
Since 2012, thousands of quintals of food items went missing in government godowns of Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (DFCSCA).
In 2013, a major scam surfaced when thousands of quintals of sugar was missing from DFCSCA godowns in Kashmir. The scam came to the fore when vigilance department raided several godowns and found public ration missing.
It was reported then that over 35,00 quintals of sugar went missing from Gulab Bagh godown alone.
The official said during the investigation it came to the fore that sugar was sold out to some dealers at the higher rates. "Some of the officials were then suspended but no recovery was made from them despite causing heavy loss to the state exchequer," the official said.
In November 2013, 10,000 quintals of rice went missing in godowns in Awantipora of Pulwama district.
Another ration scam came to the fore in 2014 when around 3000 quintals of rice went missing from a granary in Budgam district.
During 2014, the vigilance organization indicted one of the former directors of CAPD department for misappropriation of huge quantity of flour. Sources said the scam came to the fore when vigilance sleuths conducted raids at the ration depots of CAPD and found a huge quantity of rice missing.
During the September 2014 floods, over 10,000 quintals of rice went missing, but the state government is still clueless about it.
In Jammu also, a huge ration went missing in godown several times and has not been recovered so far.
The official said authorities have also failed to make recovery of misappropriated ration despite some of the government officials been indicted for misappropriating government rice, sugar, and flour.
In Industries and Commerce, Roads and Buildings, Health and Medical Education, wrong doings surfaced without any action. Now Governor will call for investigations into all scam so that culprits are punished. |
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