Avinash Azad
Early Times Report
JAMMU, Mar 7: Established in 1975 the State Procurement and Supplies Agency (SPSA) a subsidiary of Rural Development Department has produced nothing, as government is paying Rs one crore annually as salary of the officials engaged in the agency.
Sources informed Early Times that SPSA, the apex procurement body of RDD, was established in 1975, for procurement purpose, with an aim to bring transparency in the process, but unfortunately after lapse of the around 43 years, the agency remained defunct nothing.
"Salary for 22 officials engaged in the agency is being paid by the State Government", sources said and added that annually Govt spends Rs 1 crore to pay salary to the employees engaged with the Agency.
Sources said that the agency has a separate technical wing to make a check on quality of material, but unfortunately, engineers engaged here clerical jobs. "Presently as all kind of supply, cement, tiles iron bars and other requirements of the RDD is being fulfilled by the SICOP", sources said and added that if the same purchase is done through SPSA, the agency can generate revenue to pay salary of employees.
"Since we have to do here, posting in this agency is like Saza-e-kala-Pani the agency has competent staff with ability to generate revenue to grow it up, lackadaisical approaches of the higher-ups especially on the part of state Government, we do not exist anywhere", said an official of SPSA wishing not to be named.
He said that RDD procures material to the tune of several crores annually, and presently entire business is being done by SICOP and other agency, if the department empowers its own apex body, within one year it would an independent agency in case of revenue generation.
When contacted Minister, RDD&PR Abdul Haq Khan he said that by the end of this March the SPSA would be made fully functional. "All the procurement of Department will be made the SPSA, I had sought revival plan of the Agency, with in one or two week you will see the SPSA participating in the procurement process of the department", he added. |
