'CVC was asked not to inspect Games projects'

New Delhi: After all the allegations of corruption in the Commonwealth Games (CWG) preparations, many are asking why it took so long to for the scams and financial irregularities to be disclosed. Now Sudhir Kumar, the chief Commissioner of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) in 2006, has said that the CVC was asked not to inspect CWG projects. He also added that the Committee was asked to give a blanket exemption from vigilance action as there work was considered an "obstruction.""The representatives of the Delhi government and engineers from all agencies had met me around 2006. The (then) Chief Secretary of Delhi (R Narayanaswamy) was also present. CVC was asked to not inspect any of the CWG projects because this sort of vigilance would be considered an obstruction," Kumar said."There was a concern expressed by the then Delhi Government to the CVC to the effect that since they were starting to take up major projects, could CVC give them some kind of blanket assurance that no vigilance enquiries would be instituted now or taken up in the future for their sort of acts of omission and commission in the course of handling these projects," he added.Kumar also said that hurried work always indicates corruption, and that the projects must last beyond the two weeks that the Games are held. "We all know that the amount of money put in is not just for those 15 days but, for a lifetime. My concern is whether it is going to last that," the former CVC said. (Watch: 'CVC was asked not to inspect Games projects')The CVC has found serious discrepancies like award of works at higher rates to bidders, poor quality of construction and grant of work to ineligible agencies in different Games-related construction works being carried out by various departments in the Capital. (Read: CWG- Delhi's missed deadline)As per the assessment report prepared by the CVC's Chief Technical Examination Wing, large-scale procedural violations, including corruption, have been noticed in 16 projects. The estimated worth of these projects about Rs 2,000 crore.Six of them are being done by Public Works Department (PWD), three by Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), two each by Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Delhi Development Authority (DDA), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and one by RITES, a Government of India Enterprise, the report said.The CTE Wing has made the assessment of construction projects following complaint of alleged corruption in them. The CVC has asked Chief Vigilance Officers to re-examine all the tenders and procurement process related to the projects.Detractors say the report should not have been made public till the games were over. But the former CVC, Sudhir Kumar says the report is very timely, "I think they made it public so as to alert the authorities instead of just coming up with a list after the games."

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