CAG: No flood in Patna, why was Goswami paid?

Gautam Goswami was not even entitled to spend the flood relief money that he is now accused of helping embezzle. Confirming the findings of ...

Gautam Goswami was not even entitled to spend the flood relief money that he is now accused of helping embezzle. Confirming the findings of the investigative series in The Indian Express on Bihar’s flood relief scandal, a forthcoming annual CAG report on the Bihar government’s finances indicts the then Chief Secretary, Disaster Management Department (DMD) Secretary and Goswami. It lists a series of ‘‘deficiencies and defects in the procedure and implementation’’, and concludes ‘‘the possibility of major fraud could not be ruled out’’.

The draft report has been sent to the Bihar governor for comments. The final version is likely to be submitted to Parliament — since the state is under President’s rule — in the monsoon session.

The main findings of the CAG audit are:

• Allotment of Rs 13.54 crore to DM Patna was irregular.

• DM Patna did not enter into any pre-contract for supply of relief materials.

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• The entire bidding process was flawed. Though contract was awarded to BSSIC, no agreement was executed with it and cheques were issued in favour of BSSI (the fake firm by the name of Baba Satya Sai Industries run by contractor and Sadhu Yadav associate Santosh Jha) although there was no agreement with the firm.

• DM Patna diverted funds from other heads and made advance payments of Rs 17.80 crore.

• DM Patna spent Rs 61.70 lakh without authorisation for purposes other than relief.

• No stock register of items supposedly purchased was maintained by DM Patna. Only dispatch register was maintained, its entries not being authenticated by any official.

The report devotes an entire chapter to the flood scandal, ‘‘Flood Relief Operations by District Magistrate, Patna’’. In the section titled ‘‘Allotment of Rs 13.54 crore by the Disaster Management Department’’, the allotment itself comes in for criticism: ‘‘Patna was not a flood-affected district. Despite that, the DM Patna was allotted Rs 13.54 crore from Calamity Relief Fund by the DMD … Instead of surrendering the allotment, the DM Patna indented for more funds on the ground that he was the nodal officer for flood-affected districts of north Bihar.

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‘‘There was nothing on record to show that the DM Patna was notified as nodal officer by the government and was authorised to spend the amount allotted to Patna district for procurement of relief materials … In the absence of any authorisation, the department should have directed the DM Patna to surrender the allotment.’’

However, Sec, DMD maintained an ‘‘ambivalent stand’’ and noted on file that the chief secretary had directed the DM Patna to act as nodal officer, the CAG says.

‘‘But in October 2004, he directed the DM, Patna to furnish a copy of the letter, which authorised him to act as a nodal officer. No reply was received by the department from the DM Patna. The department has not furnished any reply to audit (May 2005) in this regard.’’

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