Rs 1.25 crore civic scam in shoe purchase, claims Cong

Political temperature has started rising ahead of the civic polls next year with the Opposition Congress on Friday alleging a Rs 1.25 crore scam in purchase of shoes for schoolkids in the BJP-run North MCD.

Seeking a probe, Leader of the Opposition Mukesh Goel told reporters on Friday that the purchase of four lakh pairs of black shoes for primary children involved a scam of Rs 1.25 crore as the supplier was allegedly paid an inflated price.

“The corporation is paying an average cost of Rs 90 for a pair of shoes while better quality footwear is available in market for Rs 60-65,” said Goel. Releasing pictures of some shoes with defective soles, Goel alleged the life of such inferior quality footwear was suspect.

“The corporation distributes shoes to students once in a year but the once supplied by the vendor now may not even last even a month,” he said.

Goel demanded an independent enquiry in the procurement process. The Leader of the Opposition said he had also written to Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung about the corruption in the shoe procurement deal.

Tip of the iceberg
Goel said the fresh example of the corruption in the BJP-ruled civic agency was just a tip of the iceberg and there were other wrongdoings as well.

He said the corporation procured shoes at the rate of Rs 85-95 for boys and Rs 83-93 for girls. The average cost of shoes for boys and girls is Rs 90.

Goel said the difference between the quality of shoes available in market and those distributed by the civic agency was visible to the naked eye.

The Congress attack on the ruling BJP came on a day when the Education Committee Chairperson Mamta Nagpal claimed that surprise visits to schools by her and other councillors were leading to improvement in facility and quality of education.

Nagpal said the four lakh students in the corporation’s primary schools were gaining immensely from the parent-teacher meeting held in schools.

She said earlier three parent-teacher meetings were held in one year. But now they have been increased to six in one academic session.

These meetings ensure a better understanding between teachers and parents on issues such as education of students as well as their hobbies. “These meetings also ensure transparency in the functioning of MCD schools,” said Nagpal.