1,079 houses for rural poor missing in Latehar district, probe ordered
LATEHAR: More than a thousand houses purportedly built for the poor under the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) in rural areas of Garu block in Latehar district are reportedly missing, prompting authorities to order a probe and book an official on corruption charges.
“The Mahuadand Subdivisional Officer (SDO) has been directed to find out 1,079 Indira Awas (houses) that are presently missing in Garu block. Right now, we have no trace of them,” after Latehar deputy development commissioner Anil Kumar Singh told HT.
“The concerned records were also missing from the Garu block office. The SDO has also been asked to provide us with information about the beneficiaries, the locations, and the present status of such houses,” Singh said.
The district administration has booked the Head Clerk K D Singh of Garu block office on charges of corruption in implementation of rural housing scheme after a team of senior officials led by District Supply Officer Shail Prabha Kujur visited Garu, inspected records and recorded statements of locals.
This probe was initiated after Singh noticed discrepancies in official records during a recent review meeting.
Further inquiry revealed that the numbers furnished by the block authorities did not
THE PROBE WAS INITIATED AFTER DDC NOTICED DISCREPANCIES IN OFFICIAL RECORDS
match with the figures available with the district office. The block authorities even failed to name the beneficiaries and the location of the houses.Official sources said discrepancies had gone unnoticed since 2011-12.
The district’s reputation was marred by rampant irregularities in the implementation of MGNREGA scheme that recently forced authorities to lodge separate FIRs against the Balumath and Herhanj Block Development Officers, besides others.
The previous UPA government’s IAY, a housing scheme for the poor, has been replaced by the present NDA government with the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna.