The principal of a prominent government college in the city has been indicted in a state audit report for alleged violations in procurement of computers, furniture and other facilities for postgraduate courses.
The violations amount to Rs 52.72 lakh.
K Venugopal, principal, Government R C College of Commerce and Management, Palace Road, has been accused of violating the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (KTPP) Act, 1999, in a report submitted in December last year.
The funds in question were released by the Department of Collegiate Education in December 2010.
According to the report, in 2010, Venugopal made purchases of computers and related accessories worth Rs 41.39 lakh from various vendors through quotations, instead of following a tender process as required by the KTPP Act.
“Furthermore, the quotation-based purchases have been made without any evident request for a price list,” states the report, signed by Collegiate Education under secretary U B Ulavi.
Under the same grant, furniture worth Rs 9.99 lakh was procured without a tender process. “It seems as though it was an attempt to avoid the tender process, so bills were generated from a single company, violating the KTPP Act,” the report states.
The principal has also not followed a tender process in purchase of books for students. Besides, he has not even sought a list of required books from lecturers, the report adds.
Another grant of Rs 11.33 lakh, which was released for purchase of textbooks and other facilities for SC/ST students, has been spent without following rules laid down under the KTPP Act.
As many as 13 persons have been included in the report as witnesses. Venugopal said the alleged violations took place in about 120 government colleges that received PG grants in 2010.
“The department convened a meeting of all principals during the release of the grants. We were asked to spend the money in 15 days. Also, we were new to the KTPP Act. I have requested the government for condonement of technical lapses,” he said.