ROURKELA: Amid mounting pressure from the Congress and BJP, the Rourkela Vigilance Division on Tuesday started inquiry into the alleged scam of Rs 1.80 crore in development of the central park at Chhend Colony.
Vigilance DSP Birendra Kumar Nayak confirmed that preliminary investigation into the allegation has started. A Vigilance team accompanied by government engineers carried out measurement of the boundary wall, pavement and other concrete works of the park. “The measurement work will be over in two days. Fifty per cent documents have been collected from the Rourkela Development Authority (RDA). The rest documents have been sought as part of the investigation,” he added.
A week back, BJP had staged protest in front of the Vigilance SP office at Rourkela demanding probe into the alleged irregularity. Similarly, members of the Rourkela district Congress committee led by president George Tirkey had demonstrated in front of the park demanding a Vigilance probe into the matter on June 28. Congress leaders had also met Sundargarh Collector Nikhil Pawan Kalyan over the issue.
Tirkey alleged that the latest move by Rourkela Smart City Ltd to set up a planetarium and science park at a combined cost of around Rs 25 crore at the controversial central park is a bid to cover up the irregularities. In fact, the Congress has been demanding Vigilance probe into the matter since October 2019 claiming that the RDA had spent around Rs 1.80 crore on the central park between 2014-15 and 2017-18 without any visible development.