FIR lodged against Sisodia, Jain in classroom construction case

New Delhi, April 30 (IANS) The Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) has registered a case against former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Manish Sisodia, and former Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satyendar Jain, in connection with an alleged scam in the construction of classrooms at exorbitant costs during the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government’s tenure.

According to the ACB, a massive scam worth approximately Rs 2,000 crore has been unearthed in the construction of 12,748 classrooms and school buildings.

It has been alleged that semi-permanent structure (SPS) classrooms -- with a lifespan of around 30 years -- were constructed at costs comparable to reinforced cement concrete (RCC) structures, which have a 75-year lifespan. This, despite no evident financial advantage in opting for SPS.

The project was reportedly awarded to 34 contractors, many of whom are allegedly associated with the AAP.

Investigators claim that significant cost escalations and deviations were observed, and none of the projects were completed within the stipulated time. Consultants and architects were appointed without following due procedure, and escalated costs were facilitated through them.

The Chief Technical Examiner (CTE) of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) had flagged numerous irregularities in a report dated February 17, 2020. However, this report remained suppressed for nearly three years.

The report noted violations of several clauses of the CPWD Works Manual 2014, General Financial Rules (GFR) 2017, and CVC guidelines, particularly in post-tender decision-making, which led to inflated project costs and financial loss.

Complaints from BJP leaders Harish Khurana, MLA Kapil Mishra, and Neelkanth Bakshi had alleged corruption in the construction of 12,748 classrooms at a cost of Rs 2,892 crore. The average cost of construction came to Rs 24.86 lakh per room, compared to an estimated Rs 5 lakh per room under normal conditions in Delhi.

The CVC report found that the actual cost of SPS classrooms – Rs 2,292 per sq ft -- was nearly equivalent to the cost of permanent pucca structures, which ranged from Rs 2,044 to Rs 2,416 per sq ft. Richer specifications were adopted without financial justification, defeating the cost-saving purpose of SPS construction.

During the financial year 2015-16, the Expenditure Finance Committee had approved the project with instructions to complete it by June 2016, without allowing any scope for cost escalation.

Despite this, contract values were later increased by 17 per cent to 90 per cent, leading to an escalation of Rs 326.25 crore -- including Rs 205.45 crore attributed solely to the upgraded specifications.

No fresh tenders were issued to accommodate these changes, violating CVC norms. In at least five schools, work worth Rs 42.5 crore was executed without proper tenders, using existing contracts.

--IANS

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