EMN
Dimapur, April 4
The exceedingly dubious multi-crore road development project and its company that has most citizens asking questions, the M/s Maytas-Gayatri and its special accelerated road development project in Nagaland, is in the news again. For the wrong reasons as usual.The popular anti-corruption movement Against Corruption and Unabated Taxation (ACAUT) has demanded that blacklisting the disgraced company is not enough – they government must investigate its officials for corruption. Likewise, the movement had demanded the same ‘yardstick’ for officials of the Nagaland government’s Roads & Bridges department and hunt down the corrupt.
The ACAUT issued a press release on Saturday appreciating the central government for terminating the controversial contract. The organization has demand that the officials and all the individuals and functionaries those involved in the deal be investigated.
“The Central Government’s move to terminate the contract awarded to M/s Maytas-Gayatri for the highly controversial highway project in Nagaland is a step in the right direction. As per ACAUT Nagaland representation submitted to the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi on 30th November, 2014, during his visit to the state, it had demanded that the government of India review the project and institute a Central Investigation Bureau probe into the scam in the light of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) damning report specifying the 2-laning project ‘revised estimate of 200% as shocking.’”
The ministry had also termed the revision from the initial Rs. 1296 Cr to a whopping Rs. 2978 Cr as “…funds meant for SARDP Nagaland Project were illegally diverted through manipulative method…to derail Government of India’s objective as a growing economic superpower….”
The Narendra Modi Government taking cognizance of the scam is laudable, the ACAUT stated.
“It is imperative that M/s Maytas-Gayatri is not only blacklisted but its officials responsible for the embezzlement of funds booked and jailed to set a befitting example; and the same yardstick should be applied to the conniving parties in the State R &B department,” the ACAUt demanded in its press release. However, the organization advised that Nagaland ‘should not lose out on development front on account of corrupt officials.’ In this regard, the ACAUT has requested that the ministry of Roads, Transport & Highways and the government of India to restart the project, i.e., 2-laning of Longleng-Changtongya, Mon-Tamlu-Merangkong, Phek-Pfutsero and Zunheboto-Chekhabama, at the earliest.
