Losses add up to whopping Rs 2300cr
Akshay Azad
Jammu, Jan 4: The highhandedness of state government and its bureaucratic machinery could be well gauged from the fact that a Special Task Force (STF) which was constituted, to fix responsibility for the misplacement of cabinet decision, has itself been lost in oblivion, as no one knows about the fate of much hyped STF.
Sources informed Early Times that on May 22, 2012, the state government had constituted a four members Special Task Force, to find out circumstances under which Cabinet decision number 328 of 21-06-1975 -pertaining to agreement between J&K and Union governments for execution, energy sharing and transfer of Salal Power Project- had gone missing and fix the accountability for the lapse; but astoundingly, the STF itself has been lost in oblivion as none of the officer has any trace of the report.
"It was on the basis of above said cabinet decision that the state government had entered into an agreement with NHPC for Salal Power Project, but the record pertaining to the cabinet decision as well as the agreement was found to be missing, following which a Task Force was constituted around one and half years back", sources said.
The four member STP was headed by Commissioner Secretary General Administrative Department while Additional Secretary of GAD, Additional Secretary PDD and Additional Secretary in Governor's Secretariat as members.
Moreover, sources further said that the STF had not given any time to finalize the report, due to which the STF members had not pursued the matter seriously. "It was also not known that how many times the STF members had met to discuss the issue and do some work and it is also not known whether or not the STF had compiled any report", sources said.
An official in General Administration Department (GAD), pleading anonymity said that GAD had reportedly submitted the report to PHE department, but the higher officials of PHE department feigned total ignorance about the report.
Due to missing of records the state government was not in a condition to stake claim over Salal Power Project run by NHPC and the latter had outrightly rejected state's claim to return power project.
"It was only due to missing of official records the state government is in catch 22 situation," sources said, adding that due to non availability of any record, the state government was not pursuing the matter seriously.
The state government has so far suffered losses to the tune of more than Rs 2300 Crore due to refusal of National Hydel Project Corporation (NHPC) to honour the cabinet decision, record of which has gone missing from the safe house of state government. |
