BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha Lokayukta has directed Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Odisha Police to conduct a preliminary inquiry against 12 officials of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and other persons to ascertain whether undue financial benefit was given by them to agencies in handling municipal solid waste (MSW) during 2015-16.
The direction from the Lokayukta has come on the basis of the complaint filed by activist Binayak Rath who had argued that based on the local fund audit report dated June 25, 2017, fictitious expenditure amounting to Rs 11.30 crore was made by falsely showing collection and transportation of excess quantity of MSW by the concerned sanitary inspectors and city health officer of BMC during the period from March 2015 to January 2016.
Citing the audit report, Rath had argued that this was done to give undue financial benefits to the executing agencies. The Lokayukta bench-I comprising the chairperson and member observed that despite grave observations in the local fund audit, no promptitude or seriousness was shown by the concerned authorities.
Though the surcharge proceedings were initiated against 12 defaulting officers on October 23, 2017, the show cause notices were served to only two officers in 2019 and 10 officers in 2020. The Lokayukta bench in its order dated December 12, 2022 also stated that “the allegations highlighted in the complaint were not found to be satisfactorily answered in the replies of the respondents.”
With the complainant alleging illegal nexus between the concerned BMC officials and agencies engaged for transportation of solid waste, the Lokayukta directed the DIG of Police, Economic Offences Wing of Odisha Police to conduct a preliminary inquiry against the public servants and any other person for ascertaining whether there exists a prima facie case to proceed further in the matter. The EOW DIG has been asked to submit the preliminary inquiry report within three months, while the matter has been posted for hearing on March 28, 2023.