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Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Renting desilting machines for Mithi river caused Rs 17 crore loss: EOW
Mumbai: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) probing the alleged Rs 62.6 crore Mithi river desilting scam, found that the machinery used for desilting was to be purchased by the BMC but the accused officials allegedly altered the procurement process to facilitate renting arrangements with private firms at inflated rates, causing Rs 17 crore loss on this count, according to the chargesheet. The EOW is continuing with its probe into the scam involving several BMC officials, contractors, middlemen and private companies who allegedly colluded to manipulate tenders, forged documents, and inflated bills over a decade. The case originated from a complaint filed by police inspector Bilal Ahmed Amiruddin Sheikh of the EOW. The chargesheet names BMC officials including Prashant Ramugade (assistant engineer, designated officer, storm water department), Ganesh Bendre (deputy chief engineer, Pajwa, east suburbs), and Prashant Taishette (deputy chief engineer, circulation and preservation). Alongside them, directors of private companies—Jay Joshi (Virgo Specialties Pvt Ltd) and Ketan Kadam (CEO, Woder India LLP)—have been accused of criminal conspiracy and cheating. You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai Investigations showed that Virgo Specialties purchased only one Silt Pusher Machine as late as March 28, 2023, while Woder India LLP did not acquire any such machine. Despite this, fraudulent tripartite agreements were executed, misrepresenting facts to BMC authorities, and contractors were coerced into renting non-existent machinery, states the 7,000-page chargesheet filed by the EOW. The chargesheet details that contractors Bhupendra Purohit and firms such as Acute Design, Kailash Construction Co, N A Construction, Nikhil Construction Company, and J R S Infrastructure forged memoranda of understanding (MOUs) regarding dumping grounds for disposed silt. Probe showed the supposed dumping site owners had no agreements with these contractors, nor was any silt dumped at these sites. Despite the responsibility of BMC's executive engineers to verify these documents, officials knowingly approved them without verification, resulting in false bills being passed and payments disbursed. The amount of silt removal per year was deliberately increased by the concerned BMC officials. No scientific investigation was conducted by BMC to determine the actual silt in the Mithi river bed. Taking advantage of this, the officials inflated the quantities and the estimated costs in tenders, thereby benefiting contractors and themselves, causing financial loss to the BMC. Officials have also annexed the statements of a well-known tour operator and officials of five-star hotels in Delhi and Kerala, where BMC officials visited on a study tour to inspect the machinery. As per terms, the tour expenses were to be borne by the BMC, but expenses including air tickets were paid by contractors Virgo Specialties Pvt. and Matprop Technical Services Pvt Ltd. The preliminary investigation revealed that the contractors submitted false documents claiming silt had been removed from the Mithi river. In reality, silt was deposited at sites designated by contractors, which were not verified. The BMC disbursed Rs 45.5 crore to five contractors for desilting works from 2013 to 2021. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Raksha Bandhan wishes , messages and quotes !
Indian Express
30-06-2025
- Indian Express
Wrongful loss of public money of BMC to which common Mumbaikars give tax: Court
IN THE detailed order rejecting anticipatory bail to an accused in the Mithi river desilting scam case, a Mumbai court said that wrongful loss of public money is caused to the civic body, to which the common Mumbaikar gives tax every year. While rejecting the pre-arrest bail plea of BMC Engineer Prashant Ramugade, the court said that as an officer in an important post, it is his duty to safeguard public interest, but he had 'failed to do so'. The court last week rejected the pre-arrest pleas of Ramugade and businessman Bhupendra Rajpurohit, a contractor. The Mumbai Police Economic Offences Wing (EOW) opposed Rajpurohit's plea alleging that he had submitted forged documents to the BMC without actually desilting and transporting silt from the riverside to the dumping sites, causing wrongful loss to the BMC. '…material prima facie show that the applicant is one of the conspirators along with other co-accused, and he successfully got tenders every year since 2018 in the name of either of his companies or those run through his relatives,' the court order said. It added that fake photographs were uploaded and fake logsheets maintained to show that the vehicles were making trips to collect silt from the river. 'There is wrongful loss of public money of the public body, to which the common Mumbaikar gives tax every year,' additional sessions judge N G Shukla said in the order on June 27. In the case of Ramugade, the court referred to statements of witnesses showing that he was designated to monitor the silting activities and the progress in work. The police suspect that wrongful losses of more than Rs 65 crore were caused to the BMC. 'Being officer on an important post, it was duty of the applicant (Ramugade) to safeguard the public interest, but he failed to do so,' the court said.
Time of India
26-06-2025
- Time of India
Mithi case: BMC engineer denied pre-arrest bail
Mumbai: A sessions court on Thursday rejected the anticipatory bail plea of BMC engineer Prashant Ramugade in the Rs 65-crore Mithi river desilting scam case. The court, however, granted him interim relief from arrest for a fortnight. Ramugade, deputy chief engineer of Mithi river development project, requested the court to grant the relief as he wanted to file an appeal in HC. Last week, in a detailed order rejecting the anticipatory bail plea of deputy chief engineer of the stormwater drains department (operations and maintenance), Prashant Tayshete, the sessions court had said that prima facie evidence indicates he, along with other BMC officers, played a role in manipulating the tender terms and conditions to ensure the use of two specific machines for the desilting work. tnn
India Today
06-06-2025
- India Today
ED raids actor Dino Morea's residence in Maharashtra in River Mithi cleaning scam
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday conducted raids at over 15 locations across Mumbai and Kerala in connection with the alleged Rs 65 crore Mithi River desilting scam. Among the premises searched were the residence of Bollywood actor Dino Morea, BMC Assistant Engineer Prashant Ramugade and several Dino Morea, a close associate of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, had previously been questioned twice by the EOW. The ED is now reviewing financial documents and other materials seized during the raids to trace the flow of illicit searches are part of a money laundering investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), following a case registered by the Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW). The EOW had earlier booked 13 individuals, including BMC officials and contractors, for their alleged involvement in fraudulent payments for river cleaning work that was never carried out between 2007 and suspect that tenders for renting specialised dredging equipment were manipulated to benefit selected suppliers, resulting in significant losses to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).The Mithi River, which runs through Mumbai and drains into the Arabian Sea, has long been plagued by desilting and flooding InMust Watch IN THIS STORY#Maharashtra
Indian Express
06-06-2025
- Indian Express
ED conducts searches in 15 places in multi-crore Mithi River desilting scam
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday launched a massive search operation in Mumbai and Kochi in Kerala in the alleged multi-crore Mithi River desilting scam in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The searches are being held at more than 15 locations, including the residences and offices of the 13 BMC officers, contractors, and middlemen named as accused in the FIR filed by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police last month. An agency source confirmed the development to The Indian Express. Besides Mumbai, search operations are also being held in Kerala, as one of the companies that provided the desilting machinery, Matprop Technical Services Pvt Ltd, is based in Kochi. The EOW had booked the 13 accused for causing wrongful loss to the civic body worth more than Rs 65.54 crore in the alleged scam. Based on the EOW's predicate offence, the ED last month registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) and began a money laundering investigation. Last month, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) under the EOW had booked 13 people, including five private contractors, three BMC officials, three middlemen, and two private company officials, for causing wrongful loss to the civic body worth more than Rs 65.54 crore in the alleged scam. Desilting work contracts worth nearly Rs 1,100 crore are under the scanner. Mithi River is an 18.64-km seasonal river with residential slum pockets and industrial patches alongside it. It plays the role of a natural stormwater drainage channel for Mumbai, carrying excess water during the monsoon. But, over the years, it has been used by residents to dump garbage, sewage, and industrial waste, polluting it to a significant level. After the 2005 Mumbai floods, the authorities realised the issues with the Mithi River, and the government put in efforts to clean the sludge from the riverbed to ensure uninterrupted water flow. It has been alleged that massive corruption occurred in the desilting work sanctioned and carried out by the BMC. An initial inquiry by the police revealed that various financial irregularities pertaining to contracts for desilting the river were done between 2021-22 and 2022-23. These irregularities were related to the transportation of sludge and its dumping on the ground. Later, EOW found that the contractors had submitted nine fake memoranda of understanding (MoUs). The Mumbai police named BMC assistant engineer Prashant Ramugade, deputy chief engineers Ganesh Bendre and Prashant Tayshette (retired), Deepak Mohan, Kishore Menon, Jay Joshi, Ketan Kadam and Bhupendra Purohit, the directors of Acute Designing, Kailash Construction Company, NA Construction, Nikhil Construction, and JRS Infrastructure, respectively, as the accused. Sources said ED officials are closely scrutinising the financial dealings and transactions related to the desilting work contracts. As per EOW, the accused BMC officers allegedly misused their positions for wrongful financial gains. The FIR further alleges that they conspired to defraud the BMC financially by including terms and conditions as mentioned in the contract agreement regarding the silt pusher machine and the multipurpose amphibious pontoon machine. They allegedly colluded with Mohan Menon of Matprop Company, Jay Joshi of Virgo Specialties, Ketan Kadam and other partners and directors of Vodar India LLP, and contractor Bhupendra Purohit, among others. 'The accused BMC officer of the Storm Water Drains (SWD) division of the Municipal Corporation, without verifying the authenticity of the dumping sites mentioned in the false and fabricated MOU submitted by the directors of the contractor companies Acute Designs, Kailash Construction Company, N A Construction, Nikhil Construction Company, JRS Infrastructure and others, provided and helped contractors take disadvantage,' the EOW FIR stated. Also, the FIR added that officials of the SWD division caused financial loss to the BMC by approving bills based on fake documents related to the weighbridge and log sheets. The SIT under EOW has already arrested two middlemen – Ketan Kadam and Jay Joshi – in the case. Joshi is the owner of Virgo Specialties Pvt Ltd, and Kadam is from Vodar India LLP. EOW officials seized electronic devices from Kadam and copies of posting orders of officials in the BMC's SWD department. Later, the EOW also questioned actor Dino Morea and his brother twice in the alleged scam after it was revealed that they were very close to middleman Kadam and had known him for the last 25 years. A few transactions from Kadam to Morea's account raised suspicion and prompted EOW to summon the actor.
