A complaint filed with the CVC has alleged that the V-C of the Pondicherry Central University, J A K Tareen, favoured a particular firm in awarding contracts for consultancy for the convention centre (CC) being built on the campus.
Instead of inviting tenders to identify the architects for the project, the Building Committee chaired by Tareen had decided to “call” Kadri Consultants Private Limited, which had designed the CC in Kashmir University, for the briefing. Tareen was the V-C of Kashmir University when the CC there was built by Kadri Consultants Private Limited. The Building Committee at PCU, at a meeting “unanimously” decided to “recommend the firm as architects for the project at PCU.
The complaint stated that as per a CVC order of July 2007, tenders were made compulsory for awarding contracts. This rule was allegedly flouted in selecting the architects. Hence, the university incurred an additional loss of 5 per cent of the total project cost (about Rs 2.30 crore), it said.
