Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Feb 3: In two separate cases of misappropriation of Government money, the Vigilance Organization Kashmir has booked officials of BDO Office Baghat-e-Kanipora and Soil Conservation/Agriculture Department Kulgam.
In the case against officers and officials of BDO Office Baghat-e-Kanipora, the FIR was registered after verification into the allegations of misappropriation of Government money and corrupt practices in construction of a number of Latrine Points in Halqa Dooniwari.
The investigations revealed that during the year 2012-2013, officials of RDD Block B K Pora had selected 93 beneficiaries for construction of individual household latrine points (IHHL). The cost for each latrine point was fixed as Rs 10,500. During spot inspection, randomly selected 37 beneficiaries of TSC, 13 Latrine Points were found non-existent. In furtherance of criminal conspiracy hatched by Shireen Sofi, then BDO B K Pora, Tanver Ahmad Dar, AE Sub Division B K Pora, Siddarth Bhat JE Sub Division B K Pora, Tariq Ahmad Sheikh Technical Assistant to MGNREGA in BDO office, Reyaz Ahmad Mir MPW, Gh Mohi-ud-Din Misger, Sarpanch and others have dishonestly and fraudulently shown construction of 13 latrine points which were found non-existent during spot inspection, and thereby having misappropriated an amount of Rs 66,300/- with a corresponding loss to the State exchequer.
In other case against officers and officials of Soil Conservation/Agriculture Department Kulgam, the FIR was registered after two separate verifications were conducted by Vigilance Organization Kashmir into the allegations that heavy bunglings have been committed in the allotment of works and subsequent construction of water harvesting tanks and other units under soil conservation scheme during the year 2009-2010. Assistant Soil Conservation officer Kulgam, Ghulam Hassan Bhat (now retired), in connivance with Mehraj-ud-Din Bhat, Chief Agriculture Officer Kulgam (now retired), Mehraj-ud-Din Darzi, Soil Conservation Assistant and Ghulam Hassan Shah, Field Assistant in league and active connivance with contractor namely Farooq Ahmad Tantray of Waltengo Kulgam, allotted the construction work of two Water Harvesting tanks to the said contractor at the cost of Rs 11.28 lacs and Rs 4.78 lacs respectively. The accused public servants being non-technical, prepared estimates and conducted test check of works and also deliberately did not choose to refer the matter to Executing Agency, despite the fact that the public servants had no financial authority to get these works executed. During verification, spot inspection and perusal of documents revealed that the public servants in order to bestow undue pecuniary advantage upon the contractor have released excess payment in respect of above referred works of Rs 1,32,265/- on account of inflated X-Section i.e. width and heights and an amount of Rs 1,48,187/- on account of inflated measurement against actual and existing measurement on spot. The intentional and deliberate act on the part of public servants have thus put State exchequer to wrongful loss of Rs 2,80,452/- with corresponding wrongful gain to contractor and Public servants.