Gangtok: A BJP leader on Saturday levelled charges
of misappropriation of public money in Chief Minister Pawan
Kumar Chamling's home district of South Sikkim, where a
proposed bridge on Rabi Khola has not come up 17 months beyond
the stipulated time for completion though the contractor has
received 70 per cent of the estimated cost.
Padam Bahadur Chettri said the matter came to light
following his queries to the Roads and Bridges department
under the RTI Act.
The deaprtment officials said 70 per cent work on the
bridge had been completed by the stipulated completion time of
August 18, 2008, he told reporters here.
However, the fact of the matter was that only two
incomplete pillars have come up so far, which is about five
per cent work for the proposed bridge and may be verified by
the public, Chettri said.
Alleging that the Roads and Bridges officials were in
cahoots with the contractor to siphon off public money in the
name of construction of the bridge, he said the officials
violated all norms by releasing an advance of Rs 3.42 crore to
the contractor even before the construction works could begin.
The absence of a mandatory sign board at the bridge
project site made clear the intention of the contractor and
the officials to loot public money, he claimed.
Chhetri urged the centre to ensure inspector of various
projects in the state in the public interest.
PTI
First Published: Saturday, December 19, 2009, 21:10