4 suspended for allotting civil works on single bid
Friday, 07/07/2017
http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/punjab/4-suspended-for-allotting-civil-works-on-single-bid/432859.html
Chandigarh : The Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO), Local Bodies Department, today suspended four Superintending Engineers (SEs) in connection with the allotment of civil works on a single bid.
Of the work orders of Rs800 crore, Rs500 crore were allotted on a single bid in Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ludhiana Municipal Corporations.
Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu confirmed this at a press conference here today. He said Superintending Engineers (Civil Works) PK Goel (Amritsar MC), Kulwinder Singh (Jalandhar MC) and Pawan Sharma and Dharam Singh (both from the Ludhiana MC) had been suspended for violating MC laws for tender allotment.
He said three IAS officers, who had allegedly approved the work orders while being the Commissioners of the Municipal Corporations, had been chargesheeted in this connection.
“Based on the CVO’s report, we have sent a chargesheet to Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh seeking action against MC Commissioners — Sonali Giri (Amritsar), GS Khera (Jalandhar) and Ghanshyam Thori (Ludhiana). Those found guilty of looting public money will not be spared,” the minister said.
Of 157 tenders scrutinised in Amritsar, 101 were allotted on a single bid. The number of such works in Jalandhar is 160 out of 318 tenders and, while in Jalandhar, 252 out of 526 tenders were allotted through a single bid.
A department note read that when a Vigilance team inspected sample files of work orders for the Amritsar MC, several works were found to be awarded through a single bid. A majority of funds for civil work was received under the Urban Mission and Hriday schemes of the Centre.
Subsequently, the department extended the scope of investigation to Jalandhar, Ludhiana and Bathinda.
The departmental findings brought out that “the Municipal Corporation Act, 1976, has been violated, wherein the House resolution is a must for any order above Rs25,000. The approval of the Finance and Contract Committee has not been taken in majority of the works under question.
