Lokayukta probe sought against PWD, BDA officials over Rs 7.7-cr loss

The Public Accounts Committee has recommended a Lokayukta probe into irregularities in the construction of high court judges’ quarters on a civic amenity site meant for a playground at HSR Layout in Bengaluru.

The project, abandoned by the state government owing to opposition from local residents, cost the exchequer Rs 7.71 crore.

Following the lapses in the case, the committee also advised the government to include a clause to bar contractors from claiming a ‘loss of profit’. The committee made the recommendations in a report on the Public Works Department (PWD) which was tabled in the legislature on Tuesday.

The committee had analysed the 2008 case, in which the contractor responsible for the construction of the quarters claimed damages citing the fault of officials.

The committee took objection to the fact that the PWD sanctioned the 7.19-acre plot in HSR Layout for constructing the quarters without verifying the original purpose of the land.

The department had to face an unwarranted expenditure of Rs 5.76 crore as the contractor was forced to approach an arbitrator because PWD officials did not ask him to stop the construction immediately. The department instead told the contractor that the works were to be suspended temporarily, according to the report.

The directions by the officials, which were in conflict with a court order, forced the contractor to approach the arbitrator and claim losses.

The report highlighted that the central PWD contract form had clauses that barred contractors from claiming the loss of profit. “Hence, the Finance Department is recommended to examine and suitably adopt a similar clause,” the report noted, pointing out that the Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) had made a similar recommendation.

According to the committee, a lack of coordination between the PWD and the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) was the main cause for the losses suffered. “Prima facie, (the) shortcomings of the PWD and the BDA are proven. However, the departments did not act on erring officials despite (the) CAG recommendations,” it said.

The committee urged the government to hand over the case to the Lokayukta.