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| MLA Reasi takes up corruption case with Chief Engineer PWD | | | Early Times Report
Jammu , June 19: Far from stamping it out corruption in the state has taken deep roots and is affecting the very fabric of life. Conscious of this wide spread menace, the chief Minister and his colleagues have been assuring people that it would be eradicated. Conversely, there has come to stay a nexus between the politicians of the state and contractors. Manipulating in tandem they swindle the state exchequer of crores of rupees that should have gone into the developmental works.
Construction of a 12 kilo mere long stretch of road that joins Kainth Gali with Baryote in Reasi district is a case in point.
The project was given by the Department of Roads and Buildings to J&K Construction Corporation in 2003. An amount of over 35 lakh rupees has been paid as full and final settlement for double layered medaling of the aforementioned road to M/S AS Construction, 210 Bahu Plaza.
Our correspondent has learnt that the contractors have not paid the wages of local labourers and material suppliers. Baldev Raj Sharma, the MLA Riasi has taken a serious view of the matter and written to Chief Engineer R&B, demanding that an enquiry be made into the circumstances in which the project was handed over to the JKPCC. He has raised the issues of long delay in the execution of the project besides alleged sub-standard material used in the construction. "I am shocked by no progress made in building the road in seven years and lack of concern on the par of the department", he added.
He said that considering the indifference of the government he is apprehensive that adjoining projects under PMGSY may also get delayed due to this stretch between 34-46 Kilometers on the said road.
Reports say that the department is trying to hush up the matter. Not only that some more projects are also abandoned at various stages although payment has been made to the contractors who are said to have formed a nexus with the sitting MP and important functionaries of the department.
Knowledgeable sources say that Harkewal Singh, an officer of the rank of Deputy GM in the JKPCC, is hand in glove with the MP - Contractor nexus, and it was he who released the payment to the agency even though hardly any work was done. Although JKPCC has a unit in Udhampur, yet the project was assigned to a unit in Jammu headed by an officer ready to compromise. Further investigation has revealed that several other projects, including Kather Bridge and Ganpat Bridge also allotted to the same contractor have also been assessed to have incurred losses. While a loss of 1 cr 35 lakhs has been technically assessed on Kather Bridge, an advance payment of 5 cr 9 lakh was made to the said contactor without having done the requisite work. A penalty of three crore which was imposed on him for not meeting the deadline on the project was also waived off owing to the patronage of the MP. For last two years, no work has been done on Ganpat Bridge.
An idea of the political and official patronage enjoyed by the said contractor can be had form the fact that both the bridges were allotted to him without completing codal formalities of tendering. "A Case is likely to be registered in case of Kather Bridge" said an official in the VO.
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