Officials` morale hit by CVC report on CWG corruption: Mehta

CVC`s report on corruption in several Games` projects has affected the "morale" of city officials.

New Delhi: The CVC`s report on widescale corruption and alleged irregularities in several Games` projects has affected the "morale" of the city Government officials who have been involved in the works, a top official said.

Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta, rejecting the CVC findings, said "unnecessarily panic has been created" which has affected the enthusiasm of the officials who are associated with the implementation of the projects. He said all the officials involved in Games projects were asked by the Government to carry on with their duties without any fear or apprehension. "It (the CVC report) has affected them. I told them to carry on with their work so that all the projects could be completed on time and we could host the event successfully," he said. The CVC report says almost all organisations executing infrastructure works for Commonwealth Games have flouted rules in tenders and increased their prices, suggesting that contractors have been paid more than what is the right price. Delhi Government`s Public Works Department has been implementing a host of key infrastructure projects worth over Rs 5,000 crore.According to an assessment report prepared by CVC`s Chief Technical Examination Wing, large-scale procedural violations, including corruption, have been noticed in 16 different projects being carried out by various government departments. Six of them are being implemented by Public Works Department (PWD), three by Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), two each by Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Delhi Development Authority (DDA), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and one by RITES, a Government of India Enterprise, the report said. The CVC has sent its report to all central government and Delhi government departments responsible for handling the works. Last week, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had said action, if any, would be taken after conclusion of the mega event.According to the CVC report, "Almost all the organisations executing works for Commonwealth Games have considered inadmissible factors to jack-up the reasonable price to justify award of work at quoted rates citing urgent or emergent circumstances." PTI