Eight engineers of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Ltd (KRIDL) have been suspended for facilitating what has turned out to be one of the biggest scams in Bengaluru.
These engineers cleared fake bills to the tune of Rs 118.26 crore even though the contractors did not move a stone in a majority of the works.
The suspension order was issued on Wednesday after a preliminary probe conducted by Lokayukta in 2022 found discrepancies in 113 works, all pertaining to the RR Nagar assembly constituency.
DH had written about the scam in February 2022 and the talks of suspension on Wednesday. Such is the magnitude of the scam that the engineers signed fake measurement bills, quality control reports and third-party audits for works that were not taken up on the ground, thereby clearing decks for the release of Rs 118.26 crore to the KRIDL, which was entrusted with the work.
The suspended engineers are Doddaiah, Chief Engineer, Technical Vigilance Cell under Commissioner (TVCC); Sathish Kumar K, Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE), TVCC; Basavaraj N, in-charge EE of RR Nagar; Siddaramaiah M, AE of RR Nagar; NG Umesh, AEE of Laggere; Srinivas, EE of KRIDL; Venkatalakshmi, AEE of TVCC; and Shreetej, AEE of TVCC.
Among them, Basavaraj, Siddaramaiah, and Umesh face serious charges as they signed documents falsely claiming that the work was executed. KRIDL engineer Srinivas is also facing serious charges. The TVCC engineers are under scrutiny for signing files without inspecting the actual work.
The scam
In September 2020, DK Suresh, the Bangalore Rural MP whose constituency includes part of RR Nagar, lodged a complaint with the Lokayukta alleging that the BBMP had disbursed payments to the tune of Rs 250 crore for projects that were never carried out. He further raised concerns about the swift clearance of payments by the BBMP, just two months after the projects were awarded, casting doubt on their actual completion within such a short timeframe.
Following an investigation by the Lokayukta, it was revealed that the complaint had merit. The majority of the projects were either of substandard quality or had no work done, yet the bills were approved. In a comprehensive 60-page report submitted to the government in February 2022, Justice Vishwanath Shetty found that the engineers submitted bills for 70% to 90% of the project cost, despite the actual work executed ranging from as little as 0% to 30%.
In addition to the suspension of the engineers, the state government has instructed the BBMP to blacklist Civil Square Consultants, a Bengaluru-based firm responsible for certifying the completion of the projects, despite evidence to the contrary. Furthermore, an inquiry has been initiated into all projects assigned to KRIDL over the past two years.