Clear outstanding liabilities of Leh

Leh district administration is not tired of sending communications and reminders to the State Finance and Planning Departments and in the same measure both the departments are maintaining complete taciturnity in releasing outstanding payments of Rs.5.65 crore due on account of emergency works carried out by the local administration. Does the scenario not depict a sense of negative metamorphosis of commitment of the concerned authorities towards issues concerning the public welfare? The liability has arisen on account of undertaking of works under sheer emergency mode following the after effects of flash floods and the resultant series of deluges from time to time.
Roads had to be repaired on a major scale and works of different types in flood control had to be undertaken in such a way so as to prevent more damages in future to public and private property. For this, a flood protection bund at selected vulnerable points had to be built up. The officials and experts in State Irrigation and Flood Control Department duly identified the most vulnerable spots and started work immediately as waiting for completing of time consuming formalities and first acquiring funds would only have caused havoc with the lives and property of the people.
We would like to State that in matters of such urgent nature, the process of decisions making should be decentralized and the district administration given explicit powers to go ahead. Curiously, the State authorities appear to be oblivious of the fact in this era of fast communication that telephonic approvals and authorities to undertake works should have been given which normally but necessarily should be followed by confirmations in writing. Unless we adopt pragmatic approaches in making administration people centric and responsive and bring about desired changes to ward off and eliminate obfuscatory formalities, situations like the one under reference, are bound to recur.It is, however, intriguing that had the district administration ignored the damages and their unavoidable impact, it would have been made to face the ire of the Government as to why preemptive measures were not taken and why the works of urgent nature were made to be subservient to official and administrative time consuming formalities. Even none from the public too would have held views different from that angle.
When, on the contrary, the restoration works were carried out without the district administration waiting for the funds and the formal approvals of the work plan, the Government instead of hailing the decisions taken timely and on the spot, has continuously ignored several pleas from Leh administration to release funds to enable it to make payment to agencies that undertook different works which must understandably be hard pressing the district officials.
We do not need to go in detail wise works undertaken and got completed by the Leh administration but urge the Government to see reason and immediately release funds so that the liabilities, now falling overdue, are cleared forthwith. The Government, however, is within its right to have all the works fully inspected and verified and have post disbursement audits conducted and act on the report submitted by the auditors. It can take appropriate action against anyone found to have indulged in any manipulations or irregularity with an eye to derive some pecuniary benefits. Since the matter stands already referred to Governor N N Vohra, it is expected that the stalemate was resolved soon.

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