Corruption In Road Contracts

Y.S. Rana

The writer is a Hamirpur based Himachali settled in Chandigarh

Despite 70 years of independence, according to World Bank report, still country’s population lacked access to all-weather roads. Also, award of road contracts especially in rural areas has been a major source of corruption in one way or the other. Between 2001 and 2013, the state lawmakers unfairly awarded rural road building contracts worth Rs 3,592 crore to contractors from their own caste, a new study by Princeton University, USA, published in the Journal of Development Economics has revealed. Unfairly awarded contracts often resulted in more expensive road construction, the study found. Hundreds of these roads appear to have never been built, based on the 2011 census records, keeping hundreds of thousands of people cut off from road access.

Himachal Pradesh is no exception as allegations of unfair award of road contracts have been leveled here also. In Kaza division, Chichan to Kibber road constructed in 2006 was not opened till March, 2016. In 26 states, 4,496 road works were delayed for a period ranging from one month to 129 months due to various reasons. In Himachal Pradesh, 32 road works have been delayed up to same period. In a report of 2016 it was revealed that in Himachal Pradesh discrepancies such as unconnected habitations shown as connected were found.

Around 490 road works were executed/upgraded with incorrect technical specifications in Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand. In the state some road works remained unfruitful and less than 50% of the maintenance fund was used. Princeton researchers evaluated data from 88,020 rural roads projects awarded just before and after closely contested state elections, to contractors having the same surname as the sitting member of legislative assembly (MLA).

In close elections, the winning and losing candidates are presumed to have similar characteristics. If MLAs are intervening in the award of contracts, a shift toward contractors with the same surname would be evident, and no equivalent shift for the unsuccessful contender. The use of a surname or last name as a measure of proximity between MLAs and contractors. It was based on the presumption that being caste or religion-specific and following the paternal line, the last name is a good predictor of connections between individuals from the same area, according to Jacob N. Shapiro, co-author of the study and professor at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University.

Essentially, the share of contractors whose name matched that of the winning politician in close elections increased from 4% before the election to 7% after, showing the power of the MLA to intervene in the allocation of roads in their constituency, despite having no official role to play in the PMGSY.

Favouritism In PMGSY Projects

Favouritism exists in the allotment of the PMGSY projects as has been reported earlier also. In 2013, of 113 mega road construction projects awarded by the government in Uttarakhand, 75 contracts were reported to have been awarded to well-connected people on a single-bid basis. One of the awardees was reported to be the brother-in-law of state rural development minister. MLAs with the surnames Kumar, Lal, Patel, Ram, Reddy, Singh and Yadav were most likely to have indulged in corrupt practices, Shapiro’s study says. The reporter spoke to a contractor in Himachal Pradesh who admitted of bribing local politicians to get PMGSY projects. Roads built by politically connected contractors were roughly 10% more expensive or worse, possibly not constructed at all, denying a large number of people access to a road, the report found.

CAG Conclusion…

The Auditor General (CAG) of India for the period from April 2010 to March 2015 drew a conclusion. In the CAG’s sample of 4,417 works costing Rs 7,735 crore–12% of the Rs 63,878 crore spent during the period–19 states had shown unconnected habitations as connected, while excluding eligible habitations from road projects; nine states had built roads to connect habitations that were already connected; and seven states had shown 73 road works as completed though they did not provide complete connectivity to targeted areas.

Himachal-o-Meter

The state’s ups and downs this week

HPTDC To Organise Food Festival In Shimla

Shimla: Tourists visiting the queen of hills Shimla will be able to taste traditional delicacies of Himachal. Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) will organise a food festival in Hotel Holiday Home from March 21 in Shimla. The festival will feature Hyderabadi kabab and Tandoori delicacies besides traditional Himachali dishes. Besides this, cultural nights will also be orgainsed for tourists. Notably, HPTDC organises food festival every year in summers and winters. Chefs of HPTDC prepare dhams of different areas of the state during this festival for local and tourists. Some of the major dishes that will feature in this food festival include Shekampuri kabab, hara masala kabab, nizami trout, non-veg guldasta, paneer akbari tikka, stuffed potato, khumb malai kofta, veg guldasta and mushroom takatak etc. Besides this traditional Himachali dhams and delicacies like siddu, babru etc will also be prepared for tourists.

14 PSUs Suffers Losses in Himachal

Shimla: Fourteen out of a total of 22 state public undertakings suffered a cumulative loss of Rs. 3,715.47 crore as on March 31, 2017. Rest eight PSUs posted a marginal profits at Rs. 130.56 crore. Major boards and corporations that suffered losses include Himachal State Electricity Board (Rs 2,043.84 crore), Himachal Road Transport Corporation (Rs 1,113.91 crore), State Financial Corporation (Rs 161.06 crore), Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation (Rs 107.32 crore), State Forest Corporation (Rs 97.44 crore) and Himachal Pradesh Horticulture Produce Marketing Corporation (HPMC) Rs 83.11 crore. Even the Himachal Urban Development Authority (HIMUDA), which earned profit of Rs 123.22 crore in 2015-16, slipped into red with losses of Rs 1.35 crore. Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation incurred losses to the tune of Rs 23.01 crore against losses of Rs 21.75 crore in the previous year. The PSUs that proved to be working horse includes State Civil Supplies Corporation(Rs 33.68 crore), Ex-Servicemen Corporation (Rs 33.49 crore), State Industrial Development Corporation (Rs 32.77 crore), General Industries Corporations (Rs 21.16 crore), Electronic Corporation (Rs. 5.43 crore) and Mahila Vikas Nigam (Rs 2.32 crore).

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