Suo moto cognizance of Excelsior report taken
Nishikant Khajuria
JAMMU, May 31: Taking suo-moto cognizance of the Excelsior report on missing of two Centrally funded Working Standard Laboratories of Legal Metrology Department, J&K, Anti-Corruption Bureau today conducted searches after initiating an open verification for probe in this regard.
The ACB sleuths conducted simultaneous searches in the LMD office at Transport Yard, Jammu as well as Bemina, Srinagar and seized significant record pertaining to construction of the Working Standard Laboratories, official sources told the Excelsior.
Besides, sources added, the ACB searched the offices of J&K Housing Board and seized the relevant record from there also as the Board was executing agency in construction of the labs.
Pertinent to mention that the Excelsior, in its May 25 edition, had carried out an exclusive report about major fraud in the LMD where two Working Standard Laboratories went missing notwithstanding construction of the same on papers and release of lakhs of rupees for the each lab. Government of India had funded for the construction of six WSLs, three each at Transport Yard Jammu and Bemina Srinagar. Even as all the six labs were shown constructed on papers and Utilization Certificate was also submitted to the Government of India, only four WSLs existed on ground and remaining two are missing.
Taking suo moto cognizance of the Excelsior report, sources said that the Anti- Corruption Bureau registered an open verification ( number Veri-19/2021) in this regard at Police Station Central, ACB, J&K and started investigation.
As part of the investigation, the ACB sleuths today conducted simultaneous searches in both the offices of LMD at Transport Yard Jammu and Bemina, Srinagar.
Sources said that the ACB searches began in the morning around 11 a.m and continued for more than five hours, during which the documents pertaining to construction of the labs were seized.
During the searches, sources added, the ACB sleuths also quizzed the LMD officers about the details of the works executed, funds released and utilization of the same.
The ACB teams also seized the record pertaining to additional works carried out by LMD without administrative approval and the works related to compounding wall, septic tank and underground water tank etc, further informed the sources.
Even as the Anti-Corruption Bureau, vide its communication No. ACB/Central/2021/451-55, dated 29-05-2021 to Controller LMD, requisitioned all the documents pertaining to the construction of WSLs, sources said that searches were conducted before the letter reached the Legal Metrology Department so that tampering of the record or missing of the same by the accused officers is avoided.
The Excelsior had also carried another exclusive report in its May 28 edition, reporting that a high-voltage drama took place in the LMD office at Srinagar where the officer suspected to be involved in the fraud allegedly tempered the record pertaining to construction of Working Standard Laboratories.
Sources said that the ACB teams also conducted searches in the offices of J&K Housing Board, which was the executing agency in construction of the labs. The relevant record, pertaining to WSLs work, including approved drawing of the labs and other works, was seized from the Housing Board offices.
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