HC asks Maha to list steps to give funds for tribals

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday asked the Maharashtra Government to file an affidavit informing what steps it proposed to take to ensure that the funds earmarked for tribal welfare were disbursed to the beneficiaries or for the purposes they had been allocated.

The direction was given by a bench headed by Justice V M Kanade, who asked the State to file an affidavit by September 3 on a PIL alleging Rs 6,000-crore scam in tribal welfare schemes formulated by the state government.

The court, on June 13, directed the CBI to probe into the alleged Rs 6,000 crore scam in the purchase of material related to tribal development schemes in Maharashtra. The bench had also slammed the state for not taking concrete steps to look into the serious allegations. The bench had opined that the CBI would act as the Court's Special investigating team and conduct probe in the case.