Guwahati: A “detailed investigation by a specialised agency” into the “severe irregularities and corruption” by the Arvind Kejriwal Government in the construction of 2,405 classrooms in 193 government schools in the nation’s capital has been recommended by the Delhi government’s Vigilance Directorate (DoV).
DoV sources claim that the Chief Secretary has received the vigilance directorate’s report on the situation from the Delhi government.
Additionally, “fixing the responsibilities of the pertinent Education Department and PWD officials” who were allegedly complicit in the waste of nearly Rs 1300 crore has been suggested by the Vigilance Department.
Moreover, it has advised sending the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) its findings and the Public Works Department’s (PWD) and the Education Department’s (PDE) responses for review.
In a report dated February 17, 2020, the CVC outlined irregularities in the Public Works Department’s (PWD) installation of new classrooms in several Delhi Government schools.
However, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government did not pursue the matter for 2.5 years until Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena directed the Chief Secretary to look into the delay and submit a report in this regard in August of this year. The CVC had sent the report to the DoV in February of 2020 seeking its comments on the matter.
“Apart from several procedural lapses and violation of rules and manuals to tamper with the tender process, the DoV, in its report, has specifically underlined the role of private persons viz. ‘M/s Babbar and Babbar Associates’, who, without being appointed as a consultant, not only attended a crucial meeting held on June 21, 2016, in the chamber of the then PWD Minister but also influenced the Minister for post-tender changes done in the work contracts in the name of “richer specifications” that resulted into additional financial implications of Rs 205.45 crore, the report said.
“Extra constitutional agencies/persons (like M/s Babbar & Babbar Associates) were running the administration and dictating the terms and conditions to the officers and the entire administration both at policy level as well as the execution level were implementing such directions of a private person in a place like National Capital of the Country, which is not only against TBR, 1993 and other rules, regulations and guidelines, besides being a serious threat to securities aspect. This kind of approach will lead to administrative anarchy and chaos,” the report further reads.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal ordered the creation of new classrooms to Delhi’s public schools in April 2015. The PWD was given the assignment of building 2405 classrooms in 193 institutions. It conducted a study to determine the need for classrooms and, based on the results, projected that 194 schools would require a total of 7180 equivalent classrooms (ECR), which is nearly three times the original need of 2405 classrooms.
On August 25, 2019, CVC received a complaint about anomalies and cost overruns during the construction of classrooms. In the pretext of “richer specifications,” the construction costs increased by up to 90% without a call for bids. Without holding a tender, the Delhi government approved a 500 crore rupee cost increase. Egregious infractions of the GFR and the CPWD Works Manual, as well as subpar construction.
The CVC investigation report’s conclusions state that although bids for the proposed and approved works were initially floated, the final contract value awarded varied from 17% to 90% due to “richer specifications.”
The cost increased by Rs. 326.25 crore, or 53%, over the amount of the awarded tender.
“In 194 schools, 1214 toilets were constructed against the requirement of 160 toilets with extra expenditure of Rs 37 crore. Toilets were counted and projected as classrooms by Delhi Government. Only 4027 classrooms were constructed in 141 schools. The sanctioned amount for these projects was Rs.989.26 crore and the award value of all tenders was Rs 860.63 crore, but the actual expenditure went upto Rs 1315.57 crore. No fresh tender was called but carrying out the additional work. A number of works were left incomplete. Gross violation of GFR, CPWD Works Manual and CVC Guidelines,” it said.