Cong. may avoid issue in Council

By Afshan Yasmeen

BANGALORE, SEPT. 3. Irregularities of over Rs. 40 crores brought to light in the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike's (BMP) Audit Report for 1994-95 are likely to be ``glossed over'' by the ruling party in the BMP Council, the Congress. Although the report was tabled in the council last November, it is yet to be taken up for discussion.

Several cases of misappropriation of funds and laxity on part of BMP officers have been recorded in the report. The report, available with The Hindu, says bills to the tune of over Rs. 64 lakhs and utilisation certificates of a loan of Rs. 87 lakhs disbursed under the Nehru Rozgar Yojana have not been submitted by the accounts officers for inquiry, that an advance of crores of rupees to contractors was not deducted from the final bill, and that bills for incomplete works were paid to a contractor.

In a scrutiny of the audit report for 1994-95, the previous BMP Standing Committee on Accounts raised questions over the way accounts of over Rs. 36.35 crores were maintained. It kept the amount in what is called the ``objection category'', giving an opportunity to the officials concerned to explain how the funds were spent. If they fail to do so, the officers may have to pay that amount in addition to Rs. 3.6 crores they have to shell out in any case, as recommended by the committee.

The committee, which completed its tenure last year, placed the report before the council on November 10, 2000, after discussions for over a month.

In its report, the committee suggested that the amounts in question be recovered from 170 officers allegedly involved in misappropriation.

Objections raised: After examining the details of the projects and the money spent on each work in 1994-95, the committee raised objections to expenditure of Rs. 4.03 crores in the Revenue Department, over Rs. 20 crores in the Works Department, over Rs. 12.16 crores in the Health Department, and over Rs. 9 lakhs in the Education Department.

The committee recommended recovery of over Rs. 1.5 crores from officers of the Revenue Department, Rs. 1.95 crores from those of the Works Department, Rs. 11.8 lakhs from those of the Health Department, and Rs. 38,292 from officers of the Education Department.

The committee raised several questions. ``We noted that the revenue officers had not produced utilisation certificates of the amount spent under the Nehru Rozgar Yojana for inquiry. Besides, the officers showed one amount for a particular project under the head for assessment and another amount for the same project in the Daily Collection Book (DCB),'' Mr. B.V. Ganesh and Mr. S. Shivappa, who were committee members, say.

The committee sought an explanation for the discrepancies. It also asked the BMP Commissioner to initiate action against the officers and recover the amount from them at the earliest.

Provisions under KMC Act: The KMC Act makes it mandatory for the Audit Department to submit reports to the Accounts Committee every year. It authorises the committee to verify the Audit Report and place its findings before the council for approval.

``But, since 1976, audit reports have not been tabled. If this report is discussed, it will be for the first time in the last 25 years,'' sources in the BMP's Accounts Department say.

``Although the Audit Report was included in the agenda for the council meetings during the last seven months, it is being deferred continuously. As the council's term is scheduled to end in November, the chances of discussion on the report are bleak. The delay on part of the ruling party in taking up the subject for discussion indicates that the Mayor is trying to shield some corrupt officers,'' some members of the Opposition allege.

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