Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)
Bengaluru, May 7: Leader of the opposition in the state assembly, Jagadish Shettar, has demanded resignation of rural development and panchayat raj minister, H K Patil, on moral grounds in connection with a scam which he said, running into hundreds of crores of rupees, has taken place in his department.
Shettar's allegation relates to granting tender for installation of purified water units all over the state and setting up of laboratories for testing water. He says that major fund diversions have occurred in the scheme pertaining to setting up of water testing laboratories amounting to Rs 198 crore in 146 taluks, and the project relating to installing 5,133 clean drinking water units at a cost of Rs 334.88 crore. Shettar has demanded high level investigation into this scam.
"In clear violation of rules and regulations, the contract for setting up water testing laboratories has been entrusted to an institution run by a single individual, which smacks of nepotism. For drinking water units costing Rs 2.89 lac a piece, bill of Rs 17.33 lac has been raised, and public money has been siphoned off. Has all this happened without it attracting the attention of H K Patil, who takes pride in claiming his department to be transparent?" Shettar wanted to know.
He further explained that the water testing laboratories are not being run scientifically, and their basic purpose is not being served. Shettar felt that the only purpose this scheme appears to serve is enabling an individual named Prasad Rayapati to pocket money. "Although rules say that laboratories should be run by companies involved with equipment manufacturing or authorised marketting firms, it has been given to an individual, Prasad Rayapati. After the contract was given, he set up a company. To meet the norm that the company which wants to bag the tender should have registered a turnover of Rs 57 crore during the last five years, records were provided by making a real estate firm as a partner," he alleged.
Shettar said that the government pays Rs 930 for each testing, and alleged that fake bills were prepared by the laboratory to make money in irregular way. He pointed out that bills have been prepared towards testing of 3,730 water samples in Bailahongala, duly questioning the veracity and trustworthiness of these figures.
"Minister, H K Patil, had announced that 3,000 clean drinking water units would be installed in the state within three years, duly offering to resign from the cabinet if he failed to meet this target. He pointed out that as per the statistics of the department, 5,133 units were approved, 1,560 units have been installed, out of which only 1,189 are functioning. As per my own information, 500 units are not working genuinely," he said, charging the minister of relying on lies.
He also urged the minister to come out with an explanation about the cost of installing a 500 litre capacity purified drinking water unit standing at Rs 2.89 lac in 2011-12, which suddenly went up to Rs 17.33 lac in 2012-13, and again came down to Rs 8.5 lac in 2015-16. Alleging that a big scam has taken place in these schemes, he urged for undertaking detailed investigation.