Kerala: Projects stuck in limbo

KOCHI: Even as the scorching summer has already descended on the district and is making a serious impact, the State audit department report on Ernakulam District Panchayat for the year 2016-17 has come down on the panchayat for not implementing the drinking water projects it undertook during the year. The report notes that though the necessary sum was handed over to the Kerala Water Authority, no project met its objective. The panchayat secretary is the implementing officer for the projects.

The projects are Highrange Drinking Water Project in Edakkattuvayal panchayat, Pralayakkad Drinking Water Project in Mudakkuzha and the Thrikkalathur-Pallichira Lift Irrigation Scheme in Payipra panchayat. A estimate of Rs 59 lakh was given by the KWA for the Edakkattuvayal project. Out of this Rs 45 lakh was apportioned for the year and given to Executive engineer, PH division, KWA, Muvattupuzha. However, the project has not been implemented so far. The KWA has informed that PWD has not given permission for the road cutting required for the implementation of the project and hence could not be implemented.

However, District panchayat in its report to audit query had said that KWA has agreed to secure the permission of PWD to cut the road. The audit objected to the spend of Rs 45 lakh for the project. A sum of Rs 10 lakh was given to KWA executive engineer, PH division, Aluva in March last for the Mudakkuzha project. However, the file in this regard does not give details of implementation. The audit query in this regard could not find any documents on depositing the amount. Hence the same was objected to by the department.

The project in Payipra panchayat was continuing since 2013-14. A sum of Rs 5.61 lakh was spent on the project for 2016-17, out of which Rs 5.05 lakh was given to the contractor while Rs 56,285 was recorded as retention amount. However, there is no record to prove that the contractor had received the money.

A sum of Rs 16.11 lakh has been spent on the project so far. However, the file does not show that up to which stage the project has been implemented. To the audit query, it was replied by the district panchayat authorities that the money was deposited in the VAT account of the contractor but there is no supporting document in this regard. Hence, the spend of Rs 5.61 lakh was objected to.