Rs 2.97 crore recovered in Mahisagar over ‘irregularities’ in Nal se Jal scheme: Gujarat Minister

On how many persons have been arrested in wake of the complaint, Bavaliya said that necessary arrest work is being carried out by the CID Crime Branch.

In response to a similar question by Congress’s Chanasama MLA Dineshbhai Thakor for Patan district, the Minister said that as on July 31, one complaint was received with regard to the scheme in the district. This was an Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) case of a technical employee on contract basis, he added.

Criminal proceedings are currently underway on the said complaints, the Minister stated in the response.

In response to starred questions raised by Congress MLAs Tushar Chaudhary, Jignesh Mevani and Shailesh Parmar, asking whether it is true that the Central government has stopped the funding for Nal Se Jal Scheme in the last six months due to irregularities, Water Resources Minister Kunvarji Bavaliya replied in the negative.

During the Question Hour, in response to a supplementary question raised by Parmar, the Minister stated that out of a total of 714 villages in Mahisagar district, necessary work for taps is being done in 680 villages.

“Complaints regarding this work were investigated in 630 villages and irregularities were noticed, and 112 agencies have been debarred in Mahisagar district. While recovery orders have been issued against 122 agencies and 41 water committees, Rs 2.97 crore has been recovered till date,” he said.

The Minister said that police complaints have also been registered against 12 employees.

Giving information about the ‘Jal Jeevan’ Mission and the ‘Nal Se Jal’ scheme in the Assembly, Bavaliya said that so far, a total of 91 lakh households in the state have been provided tap connections.