‘Misuse in 4 packages of Kaleshwaram ₹5,700 cr.’

Former minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nagam Janardhan Reddy has alleged that the Telangana Retired Engineers Association has been misleading people on corruption in the execution of Kaleshwaram project stating that there is no meaning to charges of ₹1 lakh crore misuse when the expenditure done so far is only ₹65,000 crore.

‘Ready for debate’

In an open statement to the retired engineers Dr. Reddy said he had been arguing from the beginning about large-scale corruption in Kaleshwaram project and sought to know whether they were ready for open debate with him on the corruption charges in the project.

Stating that he had secured information on the electromechanical machinery and material (equipment) from BHEL, suppliers of the material for Packages 6, 8, 10 and 11, by filing an RTI application and according to the information received the supply cost was only ₹1,687 crore.

However, as per the agreement value with the work agencies the cost was shown as ₹7,349 crore indicating a huge difference of ₹5,662 crore, he pointed out.

He asked whether the retired engineers body could tell people as to where the excess money from the exchequer went and sought to know whether it was not large-scale corruption. Further, Dr. Janardhan Reddy asked if the corruption was nearly ₹5,700 crore only in four packages of the project, what would be its extent in the 28 packages of the project.