Investigations by the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau into the Kalu dam misconduct case have revealed that the five Konkan Irrigation Development Corporation (KIDC) officials, booked on Monday, had caused a loss of Rs. 30 crore to the State.
The ACB had on Monday booked Girish Bapat, Balasaheb Patil, Satish Vadgave, Jaywant Kasar and Haridas Tonpe, who were with the KIDC when the contract for construction of a bridge over the Kalu river in Konkan was awarded to FA Constructions, along with partners of the construction firm.
Bapat and Patil were also booked in connection with alleged misconduct in the Balganga dam project, the contract for which was also awarded to FA Constructions. The contracts for both the dams were awarded within a span of two months.
Investigating officials said the modus operandi employed to secure both the Balganga and Kalu contracts was similar. It is known as ‘carteling’ — a process where one company makes multiple bids for the same tender through dummy companies. In the Balganga case, the ACB has found that FA Constructions entered bids through three other companies for the Kalu dam contract.
“The original tender for the Kalu dam was worth Rs. 421 crore. However, FA Constructions, while submitting its final proposal, made several additions to the materials required for the project and brought the value up to Rs. 451 crore. Ideally, the proposal should have been rejected and fresh tenders issued. Alternatively, the accused officials should have sought sanction from the State government before approving the proposal. In the Kalu dam case, neither was done and the proposed funds were released to FA Constructions, causing a loss of Rs. 30 crore to the State,” said an ACB officer.
The awarding of tenders for construction of dams over rivers in the Konkan region has been probed by the ACB since 2014, after the State government had sanctioned an open inquiry into the matter.
