Councillor seeks VB probe into 'corruption' in allotment of works

Mohali, November 1

The Mohali Municipal Corporation’s Ward No. 2 councillor Manjit Singh Sethi has sought a Vigilance probe in the alleged corruption in the allotment of development works of the civic body in the past two years.

The allegations

• Ward No. 2 councillor Manjit Singh Sethi has flagged irregularities in the laying of sewage pipeline from Balongi crematorium to Phase 11, installation of streetlights and civil work of paver blocks along roads and parks
• The councilor also claimed that MC officials were encouraging encroachments by illegal vegetable vendors in many parts of the city. He demanded a probe against illegal encroachments in the villages falling under MC limits
• He also alleged that MC vehicles and their fuel were being misused by administration officials in violation of norms.

In his letter to the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Local Bodies Minister, Secretary, Local Government, the Vigilance Bureau Director and the Mohali MC Commissioner, Sethi has listed seven points, including irregularities in the laying of sewage pipeline from Balongi crematorium to Phase 11, installation of streetlights and civil work of paver blocks along roads and parks.

Sethi alleged that despite the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court two years ago, the reserve price of advertisement tenders had been kept exceptionally high, and, as a result of it, the tenders failed to be allotted.

“From a previous price of Rs 15-18 crore, the tenders have been inflated to Rs 31 crore. The works are later allotted informally, leaving behind a scope of corruption. The government has lost around Rs 20 crore due to these practices in the last two years,” Sethi said.

The councilor also claimed that MC officials were encouraging encroachments by illegal vegetable vendors in many parts of the city.

He demanded a probe against illegal encroachments in the villages falling under MC limits. He also alleged in his letter that MC vehicles and their fuel were being misused by administration officials in violation of norms.