MARGAO
Suspecting fraudulent payments, the Shadow Council for Margao has served a notice on Margao Municipal Chairperson and Chief Officer to refrain from making any further payments from the Municipal treasury, to the door-to-door waste collection agencies Green Globe Self Help Group, Fatorda and Bapu Environmental Social Service Organisation, Ponda.
The SCM claimed that bills worth over Rs 7.93 crore is being paid to the two agencies engaged by the Council for segregated waste collection and cleaning of the various wards.
While alleging that both the said agencies have been billing the Council in excess of the services provided, SCM claimed that the work order given to the agency namely Bapu Environmental Social Service Organisation is illegal, as the same was issued without following any Codal formalities, and that too, the contract is given to an agency that was terminated for its fraudulent attempt to defraud the Municipal treasury by several lakhs of rupees; and an agency on which an FIR was filed for the same.
Furthermore, SCM stated that both the contracts appear to be the most unique, in which there is neither security deposit nor performance guarantee taken from the agency.
SCM convenor Savio Coutinho pointed out the MMC has paid inflated bills totalling a whooping amount of Rs. 5.18 crore from October 2018 till November 2021, to the agency Green Globe Self Help Group-Fatorda; and an amount of Rs 2.75 crore to the agency Bapu Environmental Social Service Organisation from the period of October 2019 to November 2021.
SCM has lamented that it has received the relevant information after three months from the filing of the RTI application on 7/10/21, that too after filing an appeal before the First Appellate Authority. “We are convinced that a serious fraud against the Municipal treasury is being permitted to carry on,” Coutinho stated.
He added: “On the basis of all the facts, and several other factors, we are contemplating of filing complaints before the appropriate forums so as to plug the siphoning of public funds and recover the losses to the public exchequer.”
SCM has warned that any further irregular and illegal payments made by the two heads of the Council, to the agencies shall be at their own risks and consequences.
