RTI reply indicates work between Clock Tower and DC Court junction 'completed'
Dimapur, August 10 (EMN): Based on an RTI reply from the PWD chief engineer's office the ACAUT has on Thursday alleged that approximately 20 crores for repairing of road between the Clock Tower and DC Court junction has been siphoned off without any repairs being done.
The documents that were released to the media by ACAUT indicate that the amount seemed to have been released to one whereas M/S Khumtsa Awomi for 'Improvement of the road between City Tower and DC Court junction, Dimapur'
" Whereas M/S Khumtsa Awomi seems to have diligently completed the repair work, as per the RTI reply, yet, it puzzles us as to how the repaired road could disappear overnight since the riverbed-like road condition hasn’t changed in the past few years unless some unscrupulous scoundrels must have stolen the road," stated ACAUT in their press release.
The RTI reply also indicated that the PWD has declared that the improvement work has been completed and an amount of 19,42,48,000/- (Nineteen Crore, forty two lakhs and forty eight thousand) already released to the contractor.
"The ACAUT Nagaland would like to question where this Rs. 20 Crore disappeared since Dimapurians are not aware of any improvement work in this stretch since 2013", stated ACAUT.It also questioned the PWD how it expects the public to believe that the ongoing work in the stetch filling the potholes with " river stones is a Rs. 20 Crore project?"
It countered if such a huge amount had been "pumped in for improvement of the road", making it better than the "Noida-Delhi Expressway but instead an "autorickshaw, a 3-wheeler goods carrier, a car, and a rickshaw have already met with accidents, with a lady passenger sustaining injuries on account of the riverbed-like road".
The ACAUT had urged the Chief Engineer, PWD, to explain the manner in which those involved were are able to embezzle the Rs. 20 Cr roads in broad-daylight.
"The CE, PWD, may take note that this general trend of brand new roads being stolen all over the state leaving behind only river-beds for the public to ply may get to the point where, when appropriate authorities step in, you may be left high and dry. The excuse of the department that it has no money to undertake repair of roads has been exposed", it further added.
