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Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- General
- Hindustan Times
AwasPlus Survey: Over 1.6 lakh in need of housing in Prayagraj
The AwasPlus Survey-2025, conducted to identify eligible people under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) in Prayagraj, has been completed. According to district officials, the survey found that 1,63,822 people in the district are in need of housing. Of these, 71,005 individuals submitted applications through the self-assessment process mandated under the scheme, while the departmental survey identified 92,817 people as eligible. The district administration is now verifying the 71,005 self-assessed applicants, officials said. Block-wise evaluation was done by the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), according to which Koraon development block has the highest number of people eligible (19,588), while Chaka has the lowest (2,049). 'Verification is underway for the AwasPlus survey under the Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana, a social welfare programme under the Union ministry of rural development to provide housing for the rural poor. Koraon has the highest demand for housing, while Chaka has the lowest. The report of both self-assessment and departmental survey is being sent to the government. Further action will follow based on official instructions,' Bhupendra Kumar Singh, project director of DRDA (Prayagraj), said. On the instructions of the state government, the AwasPlus survey was started in the district in April and continued till May. The purpose was to cover the people who had been left out under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana despite being eligible, officials said. The policy was explained to the common people and a self-assessment report was sought from them, while the departmental survey was conducted in parallel. Thereafter, the list of eligible people in all 23 blocks was finalised on May 30, they explained.
NDTV
5 days ago
- NDTV
Gujarat Minister's Son Re-Arrested After Getting Bail In MGNREGA 'Scam'
Dahod, Gujarat: The son of Gujarat minister Bachubhai Khabad was arrested immediately after he was granted bail in another case connected to MGNREGA works, a senior police official said on Friday. Kiran Khabad, son of Gujarat minister of state for panchayat and agriculture, was arrested two weeks ago for alleged involvement in a Rs 71 crore Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scam unearthed last month in Dahod. "c was arrested on Thursday night after he came out of jail on bail in the first FIR. He was arrested in a fresh case lodged by Dahod police. As per the fresh FIR, some agencies, including Kiran, received payments from the government without completing work allotted to them under MGNREGA," said Deputy Superintendent of Police Jagdishsinh Bhandari. As per the fresh FIR lodged by Dahod 'B' division police on Thursday evening against agency owners and government officials, payment of Rs 18.41 lakh has been made to agencies despite incomplete work carried out in Lavaria village of Dahod under MGNREGA. Kiran was arrested along with his brother Balvant two weeks ago after the Dahod police registered an FIR of cheating, forgery and breach of trust against unidentified persons, including government employees, following the unearthing of a Rs 71 crore scam by the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA). As per the FIR, they had not completed the assigned work or supplied the required materials between 2021 and 2024 but claimed payments by submitting bogus work completion certificates and forged documents. According to police, Balvant and Kiran are proprietors of agencies implicated in fraudulent MGNREGA projects carried out in the Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur talukas of Dahod district. After their remand ended, both of them were sent to judicial custody and subsequently granted bail by a local court on Thursday.
The Print
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Print
MGNREGA ‘scam': Gujarat minister's son arrested in second case soon after getting bail in first
'Kiran Khabad was arrested on Thursday night after he came out of jail on bail in the first FIR. He was arrested in a fresh case lodged by Dahod police. As per the fresh FIR, some agencies, including Kiran, received payments from the government without completing work allotted to them under MGNREGA,' said Deputy Superintendent of Police Jagdishsinh Bhandari. Kiran Khabad, son of Gujarat minister of state for panchayat and agriculture, was arrested two weeks ago for alleged involvement in a Rs 71 crore Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scam unearthed last month in Dahod. Dahod, May 30 (PTI) The son of Gujarat minister Bachubhai Khabad was arrested immediately after he was granted bail in another case connected to MGNREGA works, a senior police official said on Friday. As per the fresh FIR lodged by Dahod 'B' division police on Thursday evening against agency owners and government officials, payment of Rs 18.41 lakh has been made to agencies despite incomplete work carried out in Lavaria village of Dahod under MGNREGA. Kiran was arrested along with his brother Balvant two weeks ago after the Dahod police registered an FIR of cheating, forgery and breach of trust against unidentified persons, including government employees, following the unearthing of a Rs 71 crore scam by the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA). As per the FIR, they had not completed the assigned work or supplied the required materials between 2021 and 2024 but claimed payments by submitting bogus work completion certificates and forged documents. According to police, Balvant and Kiran are proprietors of agencies implicated in fraudulent MGNREGA projects carried out in the Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur talukas of Dahod district. After their remand ended, both of them were sent to judicial custody and subsequently granted bail by a local court on Thursday. PTI COR PJT BNM This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- The Hindu
Village panchayat heads asked to take effective steps to control street dogs population
District Collector R. Sukumar has exhorted the heads of village panchayats to take effective steps to control the street dogs population in the areas under their jurisdiction as the dog bite incidents are on the rise. In a meeting convened at the Collectorate on Thursday, he said more number of dog bite cases were being reported across the district as the stray dog population had increased manifold over the years. Hence, the village panchayat heads should take measures for controlling the stray dog population by performing animal birth control surgeries. Moreover, the owners of pet animals, especially dogs, should be instructed to get license for their animals after properly vaccinating them. Citing the recent accident in neighbouring Thoothukudi district in which a van plunged into a roadside open well, the Collector asked the panchayat heads to identify similar wells left in unprotected manner along the roads and also near the streets of their villages. 'If such wells are identified in your area, take immediate steps to erect fence around the wells or construct protective walls to ensure the safety of the public, especially the children,' Mr Sukumar said. The Collector appealed to the panchayat presidents to check completely the sale of banned tobacco products or other narcotic substances in their villages, particularly near the educational institutions. Moreover, drug abuse awareness messages should be shared with the villagers in sustained manner. The panchayat heads should ensure that there was no school dropouts in their area and follow the students from poor families to understand if they were pursing their higher studies in colleges after passing Plus Two public examination. He also asked the village panchayat heads to clear the tax arrears through diligent collection of taxes payable to the rural local body. Project Director of District Rural Development Agency Saravanan, Project Director of Mahalir Thittam Lakkuvan, Joint Director of Animal Husbandry Sankaranarayanan, Assistant Director of Village Panchayat Mohammed Shafi, District Child Protection Officer K. Arul Selvi and others participated.
India Today
23-05-2025
- Business
- India Today
Why lens is on BJP minister's sons in Rs 71 cr Gujarat NREGA scam
In a stark betrayal of public trust, a sophisticated embezzlement under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has surfaced in Gujarat's Dahod district, implicating the sons of minister of state for panchayat and agriculture Bachubhai of siphoning off Rs 71 crore to Rs 75 crore meant for rural employment and infrastructure reveal a calculated exploitation of one of India's flagship welfare programmes. Operating in the tribal-dominated talukas of Devgadh Baria and Dhanpur from January 2021 to December 2024, this scandal underscores systemic vulnerabilities in governance and raises questions about political accountability in a state long projected as a model of administrative a backward region bordering Madhya Pradesh, relies heavily on MGNREGA to provide employment to its tribal population, who otherwise migrate to urban centres for daily wage labour due to limited local opportunities. The scam, uncovered through diligent audits and local complaints, highlights how fraudulent practices undermined the livelihoods of the state's most vulnerable communities while exposing the complicity of government officials and politically connected scam involved the misappropriation of MGNREGA funds through fictitious projects, forged documents and payments to unauthorised firms. The key accused, Balwant Khabad and Kiran Khabad, the elder and younger sons of minister Bachubhai Khabad, allegedly orchestrated the fraud through their firms, Shri Raj Construction Co. and Shri Raj Traders. These entities allegedly received payments—Rs 30.04 crore for Shri Raj Traders and Rs 82 lakh for Shri Raj Construction Co.—without participating in mandatory bidding processes, accounting for over 40 per cent of the embezzled The fraud came to light in April 2025 during audits and field inspections by the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) in Dahod, led by director B.M. Patel. Inspections in villages such as Kuva, Redhana and Simamoi revealed that projects such as of roads, check walls and stone bunds, reported as completed, were either non-existent or complaints about absent infrastructure corroborated the audit findings, which flagged 32-35 firms for receiving payments for work documented only on paper. On April 24, Patel filed a first information report (FIR) with the Dahod police, citing charges of cheating, forgery and breach of trust against unidentified individuals, including government employees and firm investigation, led by deputy superintendent of police Jagdish Bhandari, had resulted in 11 arrests as of May 20, including Balvantsinh and Kiran Khabad, their nephew Dilip Chauhan (a former assistant programme officer for MGNREGA), and other officials such as Rasik Rathwa (deputy district development officer) and a few proprietors of the implicated firms. The probe revealed a nexus of collusion, with officials bypassing tendering protocols and clearing fraudulent bills, exposing deep-rooted administrative scam has ignited a political firestorm, providing the Opposition Congress with ammunition to challenge the BJP narrative of clean governance. Congress legislator Amit Chavda had first raised concerns about MGNREGA irregularities in Dahod during the Gujarat legislative assembly's Budget session on March 5, citing 27 complaints in state government acknowledged only one case involving Rs 18.41 lakh and claimed action against the responsible official. However, the scale of the fraud became undeniable following the DRDA's FIR and subsequent Congress, which formed a fact-finding committee this January to investigate MGNREGA irregularities, has accused the BJP of shielding Khabad and his family. Chavda estimates the scam's value could exceed Rs 100 crore and alleges similar fraud in other Dahod talukas under schemes such as Nal Se Jal.'This is a systemic robbery of the poorest, enabled by the state's inaction,' Chavda stated, demanding Khabad's removal from the cabinet and a special investigation team (SIT) probe. The Opposition's focus on Dahod's tribal communities, a vote-bank that shifted to the BJP in the assembly elections in 2022, underscores the scam's potential to reshape electoral BJP's response has been conspicuously restrained, reflecting the delicate position of managing a scandal involving a senior leader. Khabad, a four-time MLA from Devgadh Baria and a prominent OBC Koli community leader, has remained silent. Party insiders suggest Khabad may be dropped in an anticipated cabinet reshuffle, potentially timed with the appointment of a new state BJP president. This move would aim to mitigate political damage in a state where the BJP has maintained dominance by projecting administrative lack of proactive measures, such as a high-level probe or public acknowledgment, has fuelled perceptions of a cover-up, contrasting with the central government's swift actions against alleged MGNREGA irregularities in Opposition-ruled states such as West the scam could erode the BJP's credibility among tribal voters, a demographic it has worked to consolidate over the last decade. The Congress's aggressive response, coupled with its historical ties to tribal communities, positions it to capitalise on public discontent. However, the Opposition must translate this outrage into sustained electoral momentum to challenge the BJP's entrenched the Dahod scam is only the latest MGNREGA-related fraud across India, reflecting recurring challenges in the programme's implementation. In 2021-23 in West Bengal, allegations of irregularities to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore, including fake job cards and misreported projects, prompted the central government to withhold MGNREGA funds in 2022, citing corruption.A Rs 500 crore scam surfaced in Palamu and Latehar districts of Jharkhand in 2016-2018. The scam involved fraudulent muster rolls and payments to fictitious beneficiaries. Similarly, a Rs 100 crore scam in Odisha's Koraput and Rayagada districts in Odisha in 2012-2014 had ghost workers and inflated project costs, while in 2013, a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report pointed out irregularities worth a whopping Rs 8,000 crore in Uttar Pradesh. This scam also involved fake job cards, payments for non-existent workers, and diversion of funds to non-MGNREGA of these cases have led to extended investigations and arrests of local government officials, but high-profile political convictions are missing, resulting in absence of deterrence of such irregularities and thus recurrence. An activist who has been extensively working for streamlining the MGNREGA processes across Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Gujarat says all these scams are but the tip of the to India Today Magazine
