Punjabi varsity fails to recover ₹2.7 crore
PATIALA: Punjabi University has failed to recover the excess Rs 2.7 crore it paid to a contractor for construction of its buildings in 2010, six months after the Punjab higher education department directed it to do so in December 2020. The payments were made for the construction of the Masters of Business Administration (MBA) building, the University College of Engineering, renovation of hostels and the teaching block. The varsity is yet to start the recovery process.
Officials of the civil engineering branch made these payments during the tenure of the then vice-chancellor (V-C) Jaspal Singh. A state vigilance bureau report names top officials of the civil engineering branch in making these payments and causing financial loss to the varsity of Rs 2.7 crore.”
A senior university official said the vigilance department had acted on an anonymous complaint filed with it in 2017. An audit report, prepared separately, had also expressed concern over siphoning of sand worth Rs 36 lakh. The sand had been excavated during the construction of the basement of the engineering department.
“The varsity failed to produce any record related to trucks used to ferry sand from the construction site to outside the varsity premises,” said an official.
Registrar Varinder Kaushik said he had joined just two months ago and the matter had not been brought to his notice. “I am yet to look into the matter,” the registrar added.
University yet to act on 13 other probe reports
HAD PAID THE AMOUNT FOR CONSTRUCTION OF BUILDINGS ON CAMPUS IN 2010
The university is yet to take action and fix responsibility in 13 internal inquiry reports that probed allegations of corruption, nepotism and misuse of funds from 2007-2017, during the tenure of former V-C Jaspal Singh.
These inquiry reports deal with the purchase of fire extinguishers of ₹80 lakh; faulty recruitment of 62 assistant professors; giving priority to waitlisted candidates in teaching and non-teaching departments; recruitment of outsourced employees and recruitment of teachers on fake Scheduled Caste/Backward Class certificates.
Other issues include purchase of paper and answer book case at exorbitant rates; undue promotions; purchase of faulty software for the distance education department and the examination branch; incorrect pay fixation and allowing service extension to retiring employees.