Meghalaya: Corruption galore in GHADC; ‘ghost’ bills released sans actual work done

From Our Correspondent, TNT News | Tura, June 03, 2018:

The Garo Hills Autonomous District Council (GHADC) is yet again in the news for all the wrong reasons. This time around, the council was alleged of releasing 'ghost' bills without as much as a customary set of construction on the ground.

The matter was revealed after the Achik Youth Council (AYC) shot off a letter to the CEM of the GHADC seeking a cancellation of all such imprudently acquired bills from the source funds of the Council itself.

"We would like to draw your attention that some scheme-implementing departments of GHADC are not properly verifying projects undertaken at various places from the Council's funds. We found irregularity in allotment of work order, period given to complete the project, spot verifications, submitting of completion report, certifying project photographs etc," said general secretayr of AYC, Maxbirth G Momin.

"These malpractices are retarding the development of the Council and service to the general public as well," he added.

The NGO alleged that the absence of proper monitoring has brought only imprudently implicated bills flooding in Council's Treasury. "In our investigation we found huge payments made by the disbursing officer for these doubtful projects where there were no actual works done. These fraudulent withdrawal of hard earned funds have always been the main reason leading to the economic failure that has left the Council's Treasury empty," alleged Maxbirth.

"The siphoning of funds is a criminal breach of trust and is one of the reasons why employees have had to go without salary for over a year now,"

Furthermore, the AYC alleged that they found many projects undertaken by the Civil Works and Tourism Department where the bills were found to be fraudulently passed and paid.

"Moreover, we are also confident of revealing more imprudence contract bills which are suspected to be kept in Council's Treasury," he said.

The AYC further sought the immediate revocation of all such illegally sanctioned contract bills. "We are also strongly against the payment of bills for physically non-existent projects," asked the NGO.

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