Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, Dec 15: The Green Arunachal Foundation (GAF) has alleged that funds amounting to over Rs 60 crore allocated to the Disaster Management department from the State Disaster Response Fund for relief and rehabilitation purposes have been distributed to various departments without the approval of the chief secretary.
Addressing media persons at the Press Club here on Friday, GAF Chairman Takam Tatung said the GAF has submitted a complaint letter to the chief secretary, the governor, and the officer-in-charge of the Special Investigation Cell in this regard.
Citing documents received through RTI application, Tatung said the funds sanctioned for the 2017-’18 fiscal were meant for relief and rehabilitation purposes.
“However, they were distributed to various working departments, especially the WRD and the RWD, without the approval and consultation of the chief secretary, who is the chairperson of the state executive committee – clearly violating the laid-down rules under the Disaster Management Act and the policies of the state government,” Tatung said.
He alleged that the Disaster Management department has not conducted any meeting since September 2016, and that it did not conduct a meeting with regard to the release of the funds meant for carrying out relief and rehabilitation activities.
“The department has distributed funds at the whims of the State Cabinet, particularly the chief minister and the deputy chief minister, and allocated most of the funds to the work departments in West Kameng, Tawang, and Namsai districts,” Tatung said.
The GAF has sought the governor’s intervention in the matter, “to ensure that funds are not misused and reach the genuine beneficiaries,” he said.
The GAF further said that the state government should set up a committee to find the nationalities of some of the state government employees alleging them of being Tibetans.
