Team Herald
PANJIM: Four years after the beach cleaning project was hit by the tender scam, another alleged scandal has come to the fore this time on the huge procurement of dustbins.
NGO Hope Foundation has accused the Tourism Department and the beach cleaning contractor Drishti of being hand in glove in the scam.
Armed with various documents obtained under the Right to Information Act, the NGO has alleged that bill of only one stock’s procurement has been submitted to the department while payment of the entire stock is released. Moreover, the only bill has non-existing address of a firm based at Ponda.
NGO’s Director Inacio Domnick Pereira demanded that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant inquire into the matter and also investigate the role of Tourism Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar.
“The beach cleaning contract is currently given to Drishti that is paid Rs 3 lakh approx every day. The agency does not have required experience and has cut down on the workforce but increased their fees to clean the beaches,” he alleged addressing a press conference on Saturday.
Pereira said that he began investigating the matter after several Goan workers were replaced by non-Goan workforce.
The NGO’s independent investigation reveals that the agency purchased first lot of 178 dustbins at a cost of Rs 6,72,128 followed by another lot of 255 bins at Rs 17 lakh whereas the third stock comprised of 710 dust bins costing Rs 24.71 lakh and another 710 bins were procured at Rs 30.63 lakh.
Despite the huge procurement, the NGO alleged the new dust bins have not been placed on the beaches. The bills are also not submitted to the department although the contractor is paid by the department and one bill which is submitted has the name of supplier from Sardesai Building at Ponda does not exist. Pereira said when NGO members reached the address, no shop or office existed.
“On other bills, Drishti has been named as supplier, though the company does not manufacture any bins,” he alleged demanding an inquiry failing which the NGO has threatened to approach Lokayukta for investigation.
The State was hit by beach cleaning tender scam during the tenure of Dilip Parulekar as the Tourism Minister in 2015. In September 2018, the Lokayukta had submitted its report to the government recommending handing over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), within three months. Lokayukta had found the then tourism minister guilty of “favoritism”, besides other irregularities in the beach cleaning. In December 2018, the vigilance department conveyed its decision to the Lokayukta the get the case re-investigated by ACB.
