Tribune India: Ravneet Kaur: Patiala: Monday, May 21, 2018.
Contracts were given without following e-tendering guidelines.
Officials in the Punjabi University have failed to initiate an inquiry into an alleged scam committed in the University School. Recently, an RTI activist Harvinder Singh Sandhu highlighted a scam wherein lakhs of rupees were siphoned off in the name of renovation and construction of bathrooms in the University School.
However, even after a fortnight, the authorities have failed to initiate a probe and said that the executive engineers’s office and school authorities were looking into the matter.
Sandhu alleged that contracts worth Rs 32.19 lakh and 49.47 lakh were given to the contractors without following e-tendering guidelines. Former, Vice-Chancellor Dr Jaspal Singh had formed a committee to undertake repair works but important members including a retired chief engineer and superintending engineer were left out.
Moreover, only three quotations related to the construction work were provided by the varsity in an RTI reply. This includes a quotation of Rs 30.11 lakh of one contractor and two quotations worth Rs 1.26 lakh and Rs 1.86 lakh of another. Sandhu said, “The estimate of the repair work in the University School was Rs 24.23 lakh which was increased to Rs 37.88 lakh.”
University registrar Dr Manjit Singh Nijjar said, “At present the office of executive engineer and school officials are looking into the matter.”
Sandhu said, “I gave a copy of the RTI reply to the university office on May 9. It has been over 10 days but the officials have failed to inquire the matter. I will hand over a copy to the Vigilance Bureau today.”
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