BJP ex-corporator urges CM for ACB probe into CC road works ‘corruption'
Mumbai: Alleging irregularities in the 22 cement-concrete (CC) road works in south Mumbai's A ward, worth Rs 164 crore, former BJP corporator Makarand Narwekar has written to CM Devendra Fadnavis seeking an Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) probe into all road works in the city.
He claimed that there were serious discrepancies in the execution and billing, and that large-scale corruption could not be ruled out.When contacted, senior BMC officials did not comment on the issue.In his letter to the CM, Narwekar alleged: "...there exists a disturbing nexus between certain contractors and senior BMC officials, which has resulted in inflated billing and misuse of public funds. Work Code C-320 is a case in point, where deliberate inflation of material quantities took place... while the actual purchase of construction materials, such as metal, gravel, steel, and cement, was around 50 tonnes, the contractors billed BMC for 100 tonnes....""An immediate independent inquiry by ACB into all CC road contracts across Mumbai should be ordered. A thorough audit of the contractors' books of accounts, including material purchases and invoices raised to BMC, must be conducted. Furthermore, a white paper on CC road works should be sought from BMC and be made public," he said.CC road works are ongoing across the city in two phases. Phase one, which began in Feb 2023, is expected to be completed by Dec 2025, while the deadline for phase two, which started in Aug-Sept 2024, is May 2027. tnn
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