A Comptroller and Auditor General of India audit has flagged diversion of INR 9.19 crore under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana and SAUBHAGYA in Nagaland.
Share
KOHIMA — A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India on Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) and Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (SAUBHAGYA) revealed funds were diverted for other purposes in Nagaland.
The CAG report tabled in Parliament during the winter session showed a total of INR 9.19 crore funds in Nagaland were diverted from DDUGJY Plan to another plan/scheme and vice-versa.
The DDUGJY funds amounting to INR 5.99 crore were diverted to meet payment for SAUBHAGYA works, while material of INR 3.20 crore procured under the scheme was diverted temporarily for other purposes.
The audit added instances of mismatch in scheme-wise utilisation of funds by REC against the scheme wise grant received from MoP. Further, instances pertaining to diversion of funds by DISCOMs amounting INR 734.01 crore in 11 States (including Nagaland) out of 27 States and three UTs to the plans other than those earmarked by REC were noticed.
Projects of DDUGJY, RGGVY 12th Plan and SAUBHAGYA were selected for Performance Audit keeping in view the significant financial outlay involved and impact expected. Out of total 4,149 projects, 1013 in selected 27 States and three Union Territories (UTs) were sanctioned under the schemes during 2014-15 to 2019-20. In Nagaland, a total of nine projects including six DDUGJY projects in eight blocks and three RGGVY projects in six blocks, both covering 86 villages, were selected.
Also read: Nagaland Consumer Price Index data show rural-urban gap
Despite requiring in-house quality monitoring at the levels of DISCOMs (Distribution Companies/Nagaland Power Department) and REC through REC quality monitors, it showed inadequacies in monitoring of quality assurance.
Out of 17 villages test checked under DDUGJY, 14 of them revealed inspection was done with delay, About 15 days to 500 days delay was found in conducting of inspection by RQM (REC Quality Monitors).
The delay by RQM in conducting inspection of villages range from upto 100 days in three villages, more than 100 days to 300 days delay in seven villages and over 300 days in four villages. Hours of power supply in several villages under the two schemes were also not reviewed and verified by RQM.
Pre-dispatch inspection of all the materials was not carried out by all the 15 DISCOMs of 11 States, including Nagaland as per the 50 Quality Assurance (QA) guidelines of the SAUBHAGYA. Further, 100 per cent verification of household connections released was not carried out by all the 12 DISCOMs in 10 States as per the Quality assurance mechanism of SAUBHAGYA.
The DISCOMs also did not prepare comprehensive Quality Assurance (QA) plan in 224 projects of 21 States including Nagaland.