Information obtained through Right to Information (RTI) Act by an activist here has indicated rampant financial irregularities in the sinking of at least 53 borewells in Kottampatti block of Madurai district.
According to S. Azarudeen, the activist from Sekkipatti village near Melur, who is also the founder of a non-governmental organisation called Uthira Thuligal, a majority of the bills submitted for works carried out at an estimate of around ₹ 1 crore were either fake or inflated.
The RTI reply says that 53 borewells were sunk in Kottampatti block under MLA Constituency Development Scheme (MLACDS), Comprehensive School Infrastructure Development Scheme (CSIDS) and General Funds in the financial year 2016-17. Stating that only a fraction of the bills related to these works were provided by officials after he went on appeal against their failure to provide information, he said that bills worth ₹ 11 lakh were submitted in the name of a non-existent hardware shop near Vilakkuthoon in Madurai.
“The bill had no door number or phone number for the shop. However, we visited the street mentioned in the address and found that there was no such shop. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) number of the shop mentioned in the bill was also found to be invalid,” he said.
Pointing out that almost all the bills were related to the purchase of pumps and electrical items to be used in borewells, he said that the amount mentioned in the bills for various items looked highly inflated. “I was previously involved in hardware business. In the market, a 5-HP pump generally costs around ₹ 18,000 to ₹ 20,000. However, in all the bills, an amount of at least ₹ 46,000, which is more than double the market price, was mentioned for the purchase of a 5-HP pump,” he added.
He said that while many villages in Kottampatti block were reeling under acute water shortage, it was unpardonable on the part of officials to indulge in such irregularities.
A petition was also submitted to Madurai Collector to initiate a probe and take action against the irregularities.
A senior revenue official from Kottampatti block, involved in the work, however, refuted the allegations. “Moreover, we float tenders and the contractors take up the work as per allocated funds. These bills are submitted by the contractors and subsequently verified by engineers. Revenue officials cannot scrutinise all these bills,” he said.
Collector S. Natarajan has assured to conduct an enquiry.
