Oppn wants probe into scam in BMC road dept

After the opposition congratulated Mayor Snehal Ambekar over unearthing a scam in BMC's road department through a letter she wrote to BMC chief Ajoy Mehta, it demanded a probe into the scam, on the lines of the Nullah desilting inquiry. The opposition also demanded an enquiry of the officials in charge of road repairs.

MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande claimed that his party deduced that the scam amounts to Rs 1300 crore, including the cost of resurfacing of roads and putting barricades along the streets. Deshpande said that payment for road work amounting to Rs 800 crore has been made so far. Apart from this, Rs 250 crore was spent on barricades lining the streets.

BJP leader Manoj Kotak along with all Shiv Sena's corporators also demanded an inquiry into the scam, lauding the Mayor's letter.

In her letter, the Mayor pointed out that 80 per cent of the cost of road repairs is consumed by corrupt officials and only 20 per cent is actually utilised. It was pointed out that a total of Rs 7,000 crore were allotted for road repairs, of which only Rs 3,200 were utilised for repair works and there is no account of the rest of the money.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Corporator Rais Shaikh attributed the exposure of the scams to the cold war ensuing between the BMC two ruling parties, the BJP and the Shiv Sena.

Ambekar said, "Genuine letter consumed in politics. In response to my letter, Mehta has set up a vehicle tracking system for trucks that carry away debris from the repair spot."