Karnataka govt stalls over 6k PWD work worth Rs 4,500cr

Under scanner

The state government has kept over 6,000 works of the public works department (PWD) worth an estimated Rs 4,500 crore in abeyance, adding to the growing list of projects sanctioned by the previous government the B S Yediyurappa-led BJP regime has halted.

While PWD sources attribute it to a fund crunch caused due to the magnitude of flood relief activity required in North Karnataka - in the absence of central government funds which are yet to be released - Finance Department officials maintain that the projects have been stalled pending scrutiny by the new government.

The issue came to the fore following a letter by the additional chief secretary of PWD, Ports and Inland Transport Department to all its three chief engineers.

The letter, dated September 6, directed the officials to ‘temporarily withhold’ all projects that were yet to be started and were awaiting government orders.

Most of these projects were either sanctioned in the last quarter of 2018-19 and the first four months of 2019-20 when the Congress-JD(S) coalition was in power.

The directions, the order noted, was based on the recommendations of the Finance Department.

“The major reason for temporarily withholding the works, it appears, was to use some portion of the funds allocated for roads towards flood relief,” an official of PWD told DH under condition of anonymity.

As soon as the situation improves in flood-affected regions of the state, the government order will be revoked and work orders will be issued to all projects that were sanctioned but were withheld, the official said.

ISN Prasad, Additional Chief Secretary, Finance Department, ruled out that the projects were halted for want of funds.

“Many of these projects were sanctioned during the fag end of the coalition government’s tenure. Funds will be allotted to the temporarily stalled projects as soon as the government completes scrutinising these projects,” he said.

According to sources in the Finance Department, the works could have been stalled ahead of another budget scheduled to be presented by chief minister B S Yediyurappa in the upcoming Assembly session.

“Also funds had to be diverted to relief works as we are yet to get funds for flood relief from the Centre,” the source added.

Earlier, construction of over 3,000 rural roads worth Rs 865 cr of the RDPR Department were also withheld ‘pending scrutiny’ as the government “wanted to look into the special grants sanctioned by the previous government”.