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Time of India
10-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
Did officials munch 12kg dry fruits, 30kg snacks at panchayat meet in Shahdol?
Bhopal: Thirty kg snacks, 12kg dry fruits and 9kg fruits. No, this wasn't a village feast. This was the order for a "choupal" in Bhadwahi village in MP's Shahdol district on May 25, attended by about two dozen people including the district collector, other senior officials, panchayat representatives and some villagers, with bills running up to Rs 85,000. Shahdol district collector Kedar Singh, who told TOI that he "did not eat any of the dry fruits", has ordered a probe after the bills – which were put up by the panchayat for reimbursement -- went viral on social media. The "choupal" was held under the Jal Ganga Samvardhan Mission, an initiative for water conservation. The bills include 6kg cashew, 3kg raisins, 3kg badam (almond), 9kg fruits and 30kg snacks.
Time of India
10-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Officials ate 14 kilograms dry fruits at a single event in Shahdol village?
Representative photo BHOPAL: Six kilograms of 'kaju' (cashew), three kilograms of kishmish (raisins), five kilograms of 'badam' (nuts), more than nine kilograms of fruits, 30 kilograms of snacks—do you think this is the menu for a big fat Indian wedding? No, this was bought for a meeting attended by only a handful of officials at a nondescript panchayat in Shahdol district. This comes days after bills showing 168 labourers and 65 masons were deployed against the use of four litres of paint at a school, and 275 workers and 150 masons were deployed against 20 litres of paint at another school in the same Shahdol district went viral on social media. A village-level choupal was held at Bhadwahi village panchayat under Gopaharu Janpad of Shahdol district on May 25 under the Jal Ganga Samvardhan Mission—a drive aimed at water conservation. The choupal was attended by officials like the district collector, district panchayat CEO, SDM, and others. Bills for the food, tent, and other such things that were put up against this event by village panchayat officials have gone viral on social media. TOI is in possession of these bills. Bills of six kilograms of 'kaju' (cashew), three kilograms of 'kishmish' (raisins), five kilograms of 'badam' (nuts), five kilograms of sugar, six kilograms of milk, around five dozen bananas, three kilograms of 'anaar' (pomegranate), three kilograms of grapes, three kilograms of apples, 30 kilograms of snacks, and several other food items including 'poori-sabji' and tent bills worth more than Rs 85,000 have gone viral. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Ford&Go. Extra Bonus di € 1.500 e prima rata a ottobre. Ford Italia Scopri di più Undo A total of nine such bills are making rounds on social media. TOI talked to the owner of 'Govind Gupta Kirana Store' situated in Bharri village whose bill has been used for dry fruits and 30 kilograms of snacks. 'No snacks were purchased from my store. Bills must be for other expenses,' Gupta said. When asked whether 13 kilograms of dry fruits (one kilogram of 'kaju' (cashew) was purchased from another firm) were purchased from his store, Gupta said, 'Maybe it was purchased in two-three instalments. ' District collector Shahdol, Kedar Singh, has ordered the Gopaharu janpad panchayat CEO to probe and submit a report. When TOI asked officials whether they ate this much dry fruit, the district collector, Kedar Singh, responded, 'I do not eat dry fruits and I didn't eat. I came out early. As these bills have come into my cognizance, I have ordered a probe by the janpad panchayat CEO. Appropriate action would be taken against those found guilty. It is good if locals who were also present at the event were provided food, but how come so much dry fruit be used?' Incharge district panchayat CEO, Mudrika Singh, who was also at the event, said, 'It was dark. I did not see those dry fruits. We are examining the bills; there were a lot of people there. Action would be taken against those found guilty.' Gopaharu Janpad panchayat CEO, Ved Mani Mishra, has asked the panchayat convener to examine the matter. 'The official went to the panchayat, but due to incessant rain, he could not go there today. He will be visiting on Friday. Action would be taken as per the findings.'
News18
06-07-2025
- Politics
- News18
233 People, 4 Litres Paint, Single Wall: Rs 1 Lakh Bill For MP School Draws Netizens' Eyes
Last Updated: The bill, prepared by Sudhakar Construction, the firm responsible for the project, has gone viral on social media platforms for its eye-popping claims. In a bizarre incident, a school in Madhya Pradesh's Shahdol employed an unimaginable 168 labourers and 65 masons to apply just four litres of paint on a single wall of a government school in district's Sakandi village. For this task, an amount of Rs 1.07 lakh was also allegedly withdrawn. The bill, prepared by Sudhakar Construction, the firm responsible for the project, has gone viral on social media platforms for its eye-popping claims. In a similar incident in another school of Nipania village, the same private contractor, Sudhakar Constructions, raised another bill worth Rs 2.3 lakh to carry out the task of applying 20 litres of paint, installing ten windows, and fitting four doors, the media reports said. According to bills, which are circulating online, 168 labourers and 65 masons were employed to paint the wall of the school in Sakandi village, and for the one in Nipania, manpower of 275 labourers and 150 masons was used. However, ground-level reports suggested that there aren't even that many labourers or masons in and around the two villages concerned. The bills in question are from government schools in Sakandi and Nipaniya villages under Beohari tehsil. आगे मजदूर,पीछे मजदूर,अब बताओ 4 लीटर पेंट से पुताई करने में लगे कितने मजदूर?शहडोल शासकीय विद्यालय में बिना काम के फर्जी बिल निकालकर भ्रष्टाचार, शिक्षा प्रदान नहीं की जा रही, अवैध लाभ के लिए बेची जा रही है। @DrMohanYadav51 @CMMadhyaPradesh @dmshahdol #MadhyaPradesh #Shahdol … — Kunal Choudhary (@KunalChoudhary_) July 4, 2025 As per the NDTV report, Sudhakar Constructions created the bill on May 5, however, it was already approved a month before it was even created by the school principal on April 4. Additionally, the bills are legally required to be presented with before-and-after pictures of the work, however, they were approved without any such photo, the report added. Following public outrage, the state's school education minister Rao Uday Pratap Singh directed the principal secretary and the commissioner of public instructions to initiate an investigation, Times of India reported. Meanwhile, the Shahdol district administration has also ordered a separate probe. District collector Kedar Singh has appointed Beohari SDM Narendra Singh Dhurvey to conduct the inquiry, the report added. 'A probe has been ordered, and notices have been issued to the district education officer as well as the principals of the schools. We have also received the probe report for the Sakandi village school," Shahdol district collector Kedar Singh told the news outlet. Based on the SDM's findings, the Shahdol district collector ordered action against the principals of both schools and issued a notice to the officiating district education officer. According to reports citing sources, the district collector has also ordered a thorough inquiry into all recent construction and maintenance works in government schools across the district, including the payments made for those projects. First Published: July 06, 2025, 17:54 IST
