Cuttack Municipal Corporation paid for tractors however audit discovered them to be two-wheelers

Express News Service

CUTTACK:  An audit of Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) for the monetary yr 2019-20 has unearthed large irregularities and income loss amounting to crores of rupees. Sample this: Payments had been made for tractors to elevate and dispose waste however the registration quantity verification confirmed the automobiles had been two-wheelers, the 283-page audit which indicted three officers of the civic physique for the monetary frauds stated.

It identified undue favour and fictitious funds made to a agency engaged in stable waste administration together with irregularities within the subject of diesel and fee in direction of restore of fogging machines. The audit additionally questioned why the civic physique offered cleansing supplies amounting Rs 3,46,564 to the non-public company BBGMSPL which is in control of waste administration of 36 wards.

When the auditing company – Directorate of Local Fund Audit below the Finance division – issued an objection memo, CMC didn’t furnish any reply nor defended the queries.

“The CMC has with no reason shown favour to the tenderer which has caused an obvious loss to the civic body. It is quite surprising that in spite of audit objections raised previously, the practice of issuing materials is still going on deviating the terms and conditions of the agreement. Had these materials not been issued to the private agency, they could have been utilised in some wards of CMC and money to that extent would have been saved,” said the report. 

It added that the officers in control of dealing with the cleansing supplies retailer ‘is perhaps having nexus to learn themselves and the agency at the price of civic physique funds’ and advised restoration of the quantity from CMC’s Health Officer who’s accountable to offer the gadgets to the non-public company. 

The alleged frauds don’t cease right here. During scrutiny of the problem of gasoline to automobiles (tractors) engaged by the non-public company for lifting and transporting of rubbish to the dumping yard, the audit on cross verification by means of Vahana portal detected them to be two-wheelers.

It was seen the civic physique issued 4,666 litres of diesel amounting Rs 3,31,204 exhibiting use of tractors main to very large embezzlement of public funds. 

“Since these vehicles are not tractors, the trips of garbage shown lifted by those fictitious vehicles and the corresponding payment to the tune of Rs 2,76,21,033 made against skilled and unskilled labourers shown to have been engaged towards loading and unloading works are simply fake,” the audit report stated. 

Similarly, the CMC had proven to have incurred expenditure amounting Rs 6,35,336 in direction of repairing 30 fogging machines in 2019-20. The audit went by means of the earlier funds and got here to know that in February 2019, the civic physique spent Rs 4,89,682 in direction of restore and upkeep of 59 fogging machines.

The audit report said that the expenditure has been incurred for a similar inside a interval of 1 yr with none tender. Till a passable compliance is submitted by the CMC, the expenditure amounting Rs 3,50,14,800 is saved below objection.

Meanwhile, the audit report held three different officers together with the Finance Officer, Auditor and a Junior Assistant of CMC for the irregularities and advised restoration from them in proportion to their accountability.