Kerala - Alappuzha

Probe sought into boat race accounts

Staff Reporter

Demand by executive panel members

ALAPPUZHA: The controversy over the world famous Nehru Trophy Boat Race, slated to be held in August, is deepening with several members of the Nehru Trophy Boat Race Society (NTBRS) executive committee demanding a Vigilance probe into the accounts of the event’s editions in 2005 and 2006.

The demand follows the findings of a sub-committee that was appointed by the executive committee on June 8 to look into the accounts for these two editions, which were not submitted on time. According to the report submitted by the sub-committee, there were several anomalies and discrepancies in the handling of the accounts, apart from the boat race in 2006 running into losses for the first time in its 55-year-old history.

The sub-committee, while criticising the “irresponsibility” of the Cultural Procession Committee in not showing records of its expenses, noted that the Cultural Committee too had not submitted vouchers or any sort of accounts for expenses totalling Rs.1.4 lakh in 2005. The crucial Infrastructure Committee too had not submitted any documents for the various orders and tenders it had handled in that year.

The sub-committee also criticised the Rs.2.25 lakh expenditure of the 2005 Food Committee, pointing out that this was abnormally high.

The Food Committee of 2006 had spent only Rs.1.37 lakh and there were no records for effective functioning of the publicity committee, it noted.

The sub-committee, saying that no records were submitted for expenses on pavilions and spectator stands, said the Inspector of Boats had taken 69 boats on rent for the event in 2006.

These boats were apart from the ones used by the NTBRS race committee, District Tourism Promotion Council, State Water Transport Department and others. Expenses on nearly 90 boats were “very high,” the committee said.

The other findings of the sub-committee, which were submitted on Saturday to the NTBRS executive committee, include absence of supporting documents for the 2006 Cultural Committee’s expenses amounting to Rs.3.87 lakh, anomalies in ticket collections, expenses of the Souvenir Committee and also “improper” withdrawals from the NTBRS’ fixed deposit accounts.

Several members of the executive committee demanded a Vigilance probe into these anomalies and also called for immediate steps to collect a pending sponsorship amount of Rs.10.62 lakh from Malayalam Communications Limited, owners of Kairali Channel, which had won live telecast rights for the 2006 edition.

A decision on the Vigilance probe and punitive action on those who have allegedly mishandled the accounts is expected to be taken shortly by a special committee comprising District Collector V.K. Balakrishnan, K.S. Manoj, MP; K.C. Venugopal, MLA, and district panchayat president R. Nazar, among others.

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