THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Vigilance and Anti Corruption Bureau (VACB) on Thursday conducted raids at 57 grama panchayats and detected large-scale irregularities in the issuance of building construction permits and building numbers. It was found that 1,689 applications for building permits and 504 applications for building numbers were pending without any valid reasons while in several places, commercial buildings constructed by flouting the norms were found to have received building numbers. Such discrepancies were noted in Mulanthuruthy in Ernakulam, Valapattanam in Kannur, Kulasekharapuram in Kollam, Kallara in Kottayam, Kanjirappally and Puthussery and Kumaramputhur in Palakkad.
In Palamel panchayat in Alappuzha district, officials have passed a bill despite lab reports citing that weak concrete has been used for road construction.
It was also found that one contractor was given the majority of PWD works in several panchayats. In Thrikaripur panchayat in Kasaragod, out of 69 tendered works, 27 were given to one particular contractor. Similar incidents were reported in Pattanakkad panchayat in Alappuzha (21 out of 54 works), Chenkal panchayat in Thiruvananthapuram (12 out of 15), and Kallara panchayat in Kottayam (11 out of 35).
In Kattakada panchayat in Thiruvananthapuram, four works were given to a single contractor without any tender bid. Certain aided schools in Edaricode in Malappuram, Vellamunda in Wayanad, Kuttiattoor in Kannur and Thrikaripur and Chenkal in Kasaragod were found functioning without a fitness certificate of the panchayat.
In Pallikkal and Chenkal panchayats, two aided schools were found to have structural weaknesses though they possessed fitness certificates.
In Wadakkanchery panchayat in Thrissur and Kallara panchayat in Kottayam, overseers were found to have received huge amounts from private engineers and contractors via payment apps.