Defence equipment suppliers under CBI scanner

“Two material suppliers of the Indian armed forces are under the scanner of the CBI for defrauding the defence ministry of Rs 6.7 crore,” said Singh. He said one defence equipment manufacturer from the city has supplied 4,000 low quality mudguards worth Rs 5 crore to the armed forces. The mudguards are used in all terrain vehicles procured by the Army from Russia. He said investigations revealed that though the company was given a contract to do the job,the work was being executed by other local units with hardly any infrastructure.

“The quality control department didn’t take any step in spite of being aware of the quality standards prescribed for the products by the defence ministry. The samples of mud guards have gone for testing to IIT,Powai and we will initiate action against the firm once we get the results,” said Singh.

“Another city-based defence supplier that we are investigating supplied substandard chains,which are as good as junk,to the defence forces for tying together the wheels of vehicles that ply in high altitude areas that witness snowfall. They need to conform to certain quality standards otherwise there is a risk to the life of those travelling in these vehicles in inhospitable terrain and climate. The samples of chain thus supplied,worth Rs 1.7 crore,have also been sent for testing to IIT,Powai,” he said.

Singh was in the city to investigate the case of chairman of Sri Balaji Society A Balasubramanian,who is in police custody at CBI Pune office. “Balasubramanian had done a lot of publicity about his institutes being autonomous when they did not have the requisite permissions. Not even 50 per cent of the necessary infrastructure was in place. It has also emerged that he was paying the lecturers much lower salaries than what was shown in the books,” Singh said.