HAMPI/HOSAPETE: A social activist in Hampi has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Hampi circle, of a Rs 1 crore scam. The activist said that the ASI officials sold coconut and other fruits from the protected area by not inviting a tender during the period between 2013 and 2023.
The alleged scam came to light when a local resident recently sought information on the tender floated for the sale of coconut and other fruits, and the ASI responded, saying that no data was available for the said period of 10 years.
The activist said the land controlled by the ASI has around 2,000 coconut trees and a large number of other fruit-bearing trees. However, the ASI data show that there are only 894 coconut trees, 56 mango trees, 43 sapota trees and 39 tamarind trees.
The records reveal that the tender floated last year fetched the government Rs 3.75 lakh, but no such process was followed between 2013 and 2023, leading to a loss of around Rs 1 crore to the exchequer.
The activist wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the ASI director general and the Ministry of Culture. Responding to his letter, ASI Hampi circle said a tender was floated in 2023 but none of the bidders participated in the process.
D Dhananjaya, a social activist who sought the information through an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, said, “After I filed the application, I was informed that no auction was conducted between 2013 and 2023. It is clear that during those 10 years, officials of ASI, Hampi circle, illegally sold the produce and misappropriated the proceeds of around Rs 1 crore.”
Dhananjaya added, “After I sent a letter to Narendra Modi and other senior officials in 2023, the ASI officials said they floated a tender that year but nobody participated. The public must know what happened to the proceeds of the sale of fruits between 2013 and 2023. The current ASI data shows that there are only 894 coconut trees, but the number was nearly 2,200 a few years ago. The government had acquired 234 acres of land from farmers in and around the ASI limits in Hampi. The government must investigate the scam.”