Times of India: Nagpur: Monday, April 13, 2015.
The otherwise
neglected working plan wing of the forest department is again in the news for
all the wrong reasons. This time a senior IFS officer has put his former boss
in a spot by seeking information under the RTI Act about irregularities in
procurement of geomedia software, high configuration workstation and satellite
imageries worth lakhs of rupees.
According to
documents procured by TOI, TK Choubey, general manager with Forest Development
Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM), Nagpur, who was CCF (working plan), Nagpur,
prior to his present posting, had in September 2014 filed an application under
the RTI Act with the office of former boss M Karunakaran, who is APCCF (working
plan-east), Nagpur.
Choubey
sought certified copies of orders, vouchers, bills towards purchase of geomedia
software, workstations and satellite imageries etc during the last six years
from 2008-14 from Karunakaran. Of the information sought on nine queries,
information on only three was supplied. After failing to get the information,
Choubey moved state information commissioner (SIC) VD Patil here.
Patil in his
order issued on March 20, 2015, blamed Karunakaran for not providing
information and said that as first appellate authority he could have handled
the case rightly. Patil directed Karunakaran to take a hearing with the
aggrieved party in 30 days. Talking to TOI, Karunakaran denied any financial
irregularity and misappropriation of government money in procurement of
geomedia software, workstations and satellite imageries.
"There
is no truth in allegations levelled by Choubey. I followed the same procedure
as done earlier by my predecessors," he said. He further said he had
supplied all the information sought by Choubey. "As directed by the SIC,
I've also held one hearing with Choubey on Tuesday," Karunakaran informed.
From the
documents available under RTI Act, it seems direct orders were placed with the
supplier without calling quotations or floating tenders. Existing stock of 18
geomedia software (6.1 & 6 version) worth crores of rupees already present
with various working plan offices in Vidarbha was not taken into account thus
wasting government money.
Information
reveals that 13 copies geomedia software over Rs 75.60 lakh were procured in
2014 violating 1978 manual of office procedure for purchase of stores, when
they already existed in sufficient quantity. Orders were placed without calling
tenders. Several lakhs of rupees have been paid to the supplier for training to
the staff to use this software as there is no technically trained staff to
handle them.
In site of
having 30 PCs/workstations in the office of APCCF at Nagpur, 11 additional
workstations were purchased during 2013-14 worth Rs 22.60 lakh. These were also
procured without floating tenders. Out of existing PCs/workstations prior to
this purchase, 10 workstations had not even been opened since their purchase.
RTI reply reveals purchase of new PCs could have been avoided. Unnecessary
workstations have been deliberately purchased for vested reasons from selected
suppliers violating all purchase rules and not calling any tender.
The
information further reveals that in 2012, the APCCF office procured satellite
imageries over Rs 19.88 lakh. However, whereabouts of these imageries and where
these have been used is not available. These imageries too were procured
without floating tenders.
The SIC in
his order has said that while disposing of first appeals, the APCCF failed to
act in a fair and judicious manner and avoided to issue detailed information to
the applicant.
RULES
VIOLATED
· 1978 manual of office procedure for purchase of stores by
government department not followed
· Authenticity of supplier of geomedia software in huge
quantity not verified and required certificate from competent authority not
obtained
· Direct orders placed to the supplier without calling any
quotation or floating tenders
· Existing stock of software in various offices not taken
into account before ordering more
· No account of the older versions of this software that
are still operational
· No technically trained staff/official to handle the
software except one forest guard in the office of APCCF
· Whereabouts of satellite imageries purchased not known.
Such imageries are available free of cost with FSI, Dehradun, & MRSAC,
Nagpur.
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