Baijnath MC executes Rs 1.26-cr works in violation of norms

The Baijnath Municipal Council (MC) has executed works worth over Rs 1.26 crore without the approval of its House in gross violation of the rules. These facts came to light in a Vigilance probe ordered by the state government after complaints of local MLA Kishori Lal. Because of some legal disputes, the posts of president and vice-president of the council had been vacant for eight months.

During investigation, the Vigilance team found that MC officials floated tenders for civil works of over Rs 1.26 crore in violation of the provisions of Section 37 of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal Act, 1994. As per the law, in case of emergencies like natural calamities, the Executive Officer of the council could overrule such provisions and execute civil works and make purchases by bypassing the MC House. However, under normal circumstances, it was mandatory for the Executive Officer to get approval from the House or the MC president. However, he did not follow the procedure.

The MLA, while talking to The Tribune, said that the MC made substantial purchases and floated 33 tenders in gross violation of the guidelines of the state Finance Department and the HP Municipal Act, 1994, causing a heavy loss to the state exchequer. He added that these purchases were made without consulting the MC itself.

He said that he had approached Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu in this regard and demanded a probe into the financial irregularities committed by the MC officials. Later, six municipal councillors had also approached the government and demanded a probe into the financial irregularities. On his request, the state government had directed the State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Baijnath SDM to conduct an investigation into the matter.

Documents accessed by The Tribune reveal that the Baijnath MC purchased 220 imperial MS casting benches at Rs 17,000 each without following the due procedure. For such large procurements, the rules required inviting global bids, a step that was bypassed.

Similarly, the MC bought an organic waste non-heating compositing machine having a two-tonne capacity at Rs 60 lakh from the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal. The equipment developed faults shortly after installation. As per the Finance Department norms, the purchases of this magnitude must also go through a global bidding process. In this case, the Director of the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Department was not even informed.

The MC also purchased non-branded high-mast lights from private vendors at Rs 6 lakh each. Branded versions of similar lights were available at lower prices on online platforms such as Amazon.

Chaman Lal, Executive Officer of the Baijnath MC, said that several financial irregularities had come to light during the ongoing Vigilance investigation. He added that the MC was fully cooperating with the Vigilance team so that action could be taken against the guilty.