[ Karda Natam ]
ITANAGAR, Sep 2: The Upper Subansiri Non-Governmental Labour Welfare Association (USNGLWA) has come out in defence of Daporijo PWD Division Executive Engineer Tania Raji, who has been alleged to have siphoned off public money while implementing various projects under the department.
A news item had appeared in this daily on 27 August, in which allegation of misappropriation of public money was levelled against the EE by the chairman of Polo Colony Part-2.
Based on an FIR, the police in Daporijo conducted a preliminary inquiry and “detected illegalities and discrepancies in the implementation of various projects by the PWD division.”
The USNGLWA said the allegation levelled against the EE was “totally baseless and an attempt to tarnish his image by some people with vested interests.”
It claimed that the allegation that the EE siphoned off Rs 5 crore under the NLCPR for the construction of a township road without completing the work was baseless.
It claimed that 90 percent of the work was “officially completed during the tenure of the former executive engineer.”
The amount of Rs 94.37 lakhs against the 10 percent remaining work, which, too, has been completed, is still in the department’s account, the association claimed.
It also told this reporter that the department has not released a single penny to the contractor against the construction of a warehouse for storage of EVM/VVPATS machines at the district election office and the amount (Rs 59.40 lakhs) meant for it “still remains intact in the account of EE PWD, whereas 40 percent of the work has already been completed.
“Hence, there is no question of siphoning off of fund,” the association said.
With regard to the allegation of misappropriation of fund meant for maintenance of the road from the PWD division office to Pakchum Colony and from the BRTF road to Helipad Colony, the USNGLWA said the work was awarded to the contractor in 2015.
“The payment was made to the contractor by the former PWD EE but not by Raji,” the USNGLWA said, vouching for the EE’s innocence.
Meanwhile, following the police report and a public complaint, a case has been registered against the EE under the SIC, Itanagar, over alleged misappropriation of public money. Investigation has been launched.
