Karnataka Lokayukta books officials, contractor in Rs 23-crore PMAY scam
The complaint alleged that officers, in collusion with contractors, prepared fake bills and records despite several houses remaining incomplete.
One of the arrested is the office boy at Tiger Baby Digital LLP who has been employed for the past seven years (Representational image) The Karnataka Lokayukta on Tuesday registered a case against officers of the Karnataka Slum Development Board and a private contractor for allegedly causing the government a loss of over Rs 23.35 crore through irregularities in housing works executed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme in Belagavi district.
According to Lokayukta officials, large-scale irregularities were allegedly committed in PMAY housing projects undertaken in the notified slum areas of Ramdurg town. The complaint alleged that officers, in collusion with contractors, prepared fake bills and records despite several houses remaining incomplete.
Investigators found that although nearly 600 houses were allegedly not fully constructed, officials certified the work as completed and facilitated the release of payments by creating false inspection reports and fabricated GPS-based photographic records.
Lokayukta officials said Rs 29.45 crore was released to the contractor between April 2019 and November 2024 through 13 bills and related approvals.
A preliminary inquiry reportedly revealed that instead of constructing complete houses for beneficiaries, only construction materials worth around Rs 6.10 crore were supplied. Government funds amounting to nearly Rs 23.35 crore were allegedly misappropriated in collusion with officials and contractors.
Based on the findings, the Lokayukta registered a case against retired Assistant Executive Engineer Shambulingappa B.S., contractor Prasad N.P. of National Projects Construction Corporation Limited (NPCC), and others.
The case was registered by Karnataka Lokayukta SP (Belagavi unit) Prasanna Desai, while Inspector Venkatesh Yadahalli is conducting the investigation.
On May 19, Lokayukta teams conducted simultaneous searches at multiple locations linked to the accused, including government offices, the residences of officials and contractors, and the Bengaluru office of NPCC. Several documents related to the alleged irregularities were seized during the raids.
Share
