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| 2 powerful Ministers get lions share in 'renovation' of residential bunglows | | 'Refurbishing' works executed by Estates Deptt without tendering process | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Nov 3: As the sprucing up exercise is underway to give facelift to offices and residential places ahead of Durbar Move, Estates Department is once again indulging in selective approach -all to please the political bosses and powerful babus in refurbishing the houses. Most of the works in ministerial bunglows are said to have been done without formal tendering process, thanks to a 'well-built' nexus which is allowing this to happen.
Sources said repairs and renovation works accruing expenditure worth lakhs of rupees has been going on in many bunglows of PDP-BJP ministers in VIP residential areas in Jammu. In the bunglows of two powerful ministers, one each from PDP and BJP, huge amount is being spent on the works in the name of repairs as per the 'taste and liking' of the mantris, be it paint on the wall or the new order of furnishings in the houses. All this is being facilitated by one of the employees posted in Jammu Estates department who over the last three decades has managed to create a strong nexus with contractors and powerful lobbies in the government.
Sources said this employee despite being junior over the years has mastered the art of pleasing the powerful ministers by initiating the renovation works at their allotted bunglows on his own, no matter that mounts up huge bills and burden on the exchequer. He has become an executing authority unto himself on account of his connections with influential ministers in any government, sources said. He is only a draftsman but he has now created a new post of computer section head on his own which allows him to have free hand in the tendering process etc, sources said, adding that due to his high profile connections with cabinet ministers, bureaucrats and even some media persons, the authorities in the Estates Department who are actually required to initiate works as per the necessity and requirement in the bunglows, have not resisted to his acts of omission and commission.
Sources said these irregularities have been happening for many years and not just ministers but bureaucrats too have got 'booty' in the past in terms of getting their bunglows refurbished much beyond to what they were entitled. In some cases the expenditure crossed the limit much more than what these babus would get as their per annum salaries, sources said, adding that this was also in gross violation to set norms of spending not more than Rs 25000-30000 on the renovation works. There is also a strong nexus of getting commissions which reaches to top levels from the contractors who have monopolised the whole system with Estates department. It is this employee who decides in Jammu region as to what work should be executed through a particular engineer in tandem with contractors. All this happens in a neat and discreet manner, sources said, adding that the matter of malpractices in renovation works came to fore recently when the contractors went on strike due to their withheld money, sources said.
Pertinently, the Estates department despite being in controversies and in news for all the wrong reasons has enjoyed impunity of audits for many years and no report with regard to its audit has been presented in the Assembly for the sole reason that it comes under the Chief Minister. |
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