'North Corpn is heading towards bankruptcy'

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation is heading towards bankruptcy as it has been using the revenue generated from conversion charges, parking fees and money meant for provident fund and pensions to give salaries to its employees, according to the Opposition.

The civic agency has not even paid their contractors for over a year, revealed a report tabled in Standing Committee meeting on Wednesday.

Moreover, the corporation is yet to make payment of Rs 266 crore to its contractors for ongoing projects under its engineering department, it said.

A senior official with engineering department said that the corporation has not paid the contractors since August 16, 2013. Many projects are getting delayed due to the financial crunch. These include the Rani Jhansi grid separator project.

Corporations usually blame the Centre for lack of funds but the North civic agency said it has got around 75 per cent of the payment for its projects.

“If the civic agency is getting 75 per cent of the payment, then why all the projects are delayed and the corporation blames state government for lack of funds?” said Leader of Opposition, Mukesh Goel.

The civic agency in a reply to the questions asked by Goel and Prithvi Singh Rathore, a councillor from Peera Garhi area in Rohini, said that it has approached the Delhi government seeking funds to make payment of its dues but it didn’t get any loan.

“The sorry state of affairs can be judged by the fact that the corporation has used the revenue generated from conversion charges and parking to pay salaries to its employees. This money was meant to provide facilities to the people of the city,” said Goel.

“Using money collected from pensions and provident funds of the employees to distribute salaries is illegal. If this is the status then corporation is moving towards bankruptcy,” said Goel.

The north civic agency has taken a loan of Rs 190 crore to give salaries to its employees, the report said.

But Leader of the House, North Corporation, Mira Aggarwal, said that no project has been stopped. “Only the payment to some  projects has been delayed.

The projects are running and the contractors will be paid once the work is finished,” Aggarwal added.

Chairman of the Standing Committee Mohan Bhardwaj asked officials to file a report explaining status of the projects.