An organization by the name– All India Anti Corruption Organisation (AIACO), Nagaland unit, has demanded a thorough CBI probe into various financial irregularities in the state.
In a statement, AIACO state vice-president Dziesevituo Solo, citing the CAG’s report on “Social, Economic, General, and Revenue Sectors” for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2022, alleged that the state government had diverted subsidised SKO valued at Rs 19.56 crore or 6113.19 kilo litres (KL) to the open market.
He said the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India’s report had revealed that Nagaland had violated the Centre’s directives by diverting superior kerosene oil (SKO) to open market instead of distributing it to the targeted beneficiaries under the Public Distribution System (PDS).
The CAG’s investigation unearthed discrepancies in the allocation and distribution of SKO. It was discovered that while the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas allocated 17,892 KL of SKO to the state between 2019-21, the state government reported lifting only 13,752 KL from Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) during the period. However, further scrutiny revealed that the state government had actually lifted 17,367 KL of SKO, resulting in a shortfall of 525 KL. Additionally, the report highlighted irregularities in the allocation of SKO to individuals and distributors. Moreover, the CAG also flagged fraudulent payments made by the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin (SBM-G).
He said that the report for the year ending March 30, 2020 stated that the PHE (Urban) Dimapur Division executive engineer (EE) did not exercise due diligence to check correctness of quantities executed before passing bills for payment. This resulted in fraudulent payment of Rs 90.54 lakh without actual execution of 2,338 metres of drainage works in 18 villages.
In another case involving the PHED, it said the CAG reported that the department made excess payment of Rs 1.23 crore to a contractor by allowing higher rate over the state government-approved rate (Action Plan) for construction of community sanitary complexes (CSCs) and deviated from the approved action plans and specifications during actual implementation.
The matter was reported to the State government in August 2021, and a reply was awaited as of May 2022, the CAG said.
The CAG recommended a departmental inquiry and fixing of responsibility against officials responsible for the irregularities. In light of these findings, the AIACO has called for a thorough CBI probe to ensure accountability and uphold public welfare in Nagaland.