New Delhi: The CBI on Saturday registered a case against some officials of the Public Works Department(PWD) and a few firms in connection with alleged irregularities in the project for construction of the Rs 620 crore Barapullah Nullah flyover for the Commonwealth Games.
A CBI spokesperson gave this information in a press statement but did not give details.
The investigating agency has alleged that the contractor and PWD officials had inflated the cost of the project.
The construction of the bridge had came in for some flak from the Prime Minister-appointed Shunglu committee which had criticized the Delhi government for alleged irregularities in the Barapullah flyover project.
The Shunglu Committee questioned the very need for the Barapullah elevated road corridor which was constructed with the aim of giving quick access to the main Jawaharlal Nehru stadium from the Games village.
The Committee stated that if the traffic police could have implemented dedicated lanes elsewhere, it could have easily transported athletes from the Games Village to the stadium without having to construct the structure.
The Committee report felt that if the government had acted expeditiously, it could have saved the cost overruns to the tune of Rs 109 crore. Construction of the flyover cost nearly Rs 56,000 per square metre.
The PWD department is headed by Delhi Minister Raj Kumar Chauhan who incidentally has been indicted by the state Lok Ayukta for allegedly trying to shield a leading resort in the outskirts of the Capital in a tax evasion case.
During the intervening period from June 2006 to January 2008, the project remained merely on paper as the Delhi government, ASI, Zoo Authority, Traffic Police, DDA, Delhi Wakf Board and DUAC restricted themselves to just discussing it. A decision to go ahead was finally taken in April 2008.
The report indicted the contractor on several accounts.
"Delay in fabrication and mobilisation of launching girders, labour problems due to non-payment, problems with suppliers who were not paid in time, contractor's reluctance to put in additional efforts like night working," the report claimed.
The committee had also lashed out at the government for having divided the project into two packages.
"No records are available to show the reason why both the packages were awarded to a single contractor. Why was a condition not incorporated that a single agency would not be awarded both the packages and why, in the alternative, an option was not given to the tenderer's that they could offer a
discount for being awarded both the packages," the report said.
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