Kurukshetra/ Ambala: Vigilance Bureau team Karnal took action after an assessment report revealed embezzlements worth Rs 2 cores in the construction of Hafed godown at Bhor Saidan village in Kurukshetra district in 2016 and some of the construction work is still pending in which charges were framed against eight persons including the contractor Shashank Garg proprietor of Garg Construction Company Jind in which the contractor and six alleged government employees of PWD and Hafed against whom case was registered in September 2018 with the recovery of amount were Rajiv Jain Superintending Engineer and the then Executive Engineer, Hafed Sub Divisional Engineer Sumit Kumar, Junior Engineers Rajesh Sirohi and Vibhor Nagpal, Hafed Accountant Rajbir Singh, SO Prem Singh and the contractor Shashank Garg.
Six officials of Haryana PWD (B &R) and Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation (HAFED) along with private contractor Shashank Garg have been arrested by the State Vigilance Bureau for their involvement in the alleged embezzlements. As per the vigilance bureau officials, the action was taken after an assessment report revealed embezzlement in the construction of Hafed godown in 2016 and the assessment completed in 2022. Vigilance Bureau’s Karnal DSP Narender Kumar said that they have been arrested following the investigation report and registration of the first investigation report were booked under sections 218, 409, 420, 120 (B) of the Indian Penal Code and sections 13(1)(d) 13(1)(C) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. All alleged accuse were arrested on January 23, 2023 and remanded to police custody for three days by the court. Investigation also reveals that the Contractor Shashank Garg was not only bribing the officers but also presenting them costly gifts.
There are also large number of projects adversely affected at Ambala pending since a long time due to embezzlements by the officials of PWD (B&R) and the contractor in which the payment s worth crores of rupees were released to the contractor on the basis of fake bills in which State Vigilance Bureau Ambala observed that the payments were released without receipt of material on the basis of fake bills. When embezzlements exposed government also suspended three senior officials of PWD. Among worst affected nine projects at Ambala most of these yet incomplete hanging on fire include International level football stadium at Ambala Cantt in which 33000 quintal steel was shown used in the construction as against only 13000 quintal steel and payment was made on the basis of fake bills. Similarly, in another fraud detected by Vigilance Bureau in construction of Mini Secretariat Ambala City in which the bill was paid for the steel over 14974 quintal steel whereas actual quantity of 11251 quintal steel received.
Among other projects at Ambala yet left incomplete in which fraud worth crores of rupees has been detected include three storey buildings for the residential flats of doctors and para-medical staff of Civil Hospitals being constructed on Jagadhary Road Ambala Cantt have been shown six storey in bills in which steel frames for windows as well doors used in flats have also been shown purchased and paid falsely on the basis of fake bills. Large numbers of payments have been made by PWD (B&R) on fake bills in the projects the construction of 100 bed wards inside Civil Hospital Ambala Cantt, Construction of Government Homeopathy College & Hospital at Ambala, construction of building for Government Women College at Ambala City and construction of Polytechnic College at village Lakhnaura Sahib near Ambala City and question arises why all contracts were made with only Garg Construction Company.
