Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has ordered an inquiry into the Mission Bhagiratha scheme over concerns that corruption to the tune of nearly ₹7,000 crore took place in its execution, according to an internal report of the Vigilance Department.
Mission Bhagiratha is a programme launched by the previous government with the aim of supplying treated drinking water to every household in the State.
Ordering the inquiry into the execution of the scheme, Mr. Revanth Reddy instructed officials to pick one village from each mandal and verify the funds spent and the works done.
Sources said that the contractors drew bills without laying pipelines and taps at several places. Bills were also drawn to purchase the material for laying pipes, but no purchases were made. In some places, material was purchased but was found dumped in rooms, rendering it unfit for use.
The Vigilance inquiry was based on complaints from several villages. To its surprise, the inspections revealed large-scale corruption in the scheme, which was a flagship initiative of the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) government.
The directions from the Chief Minister to launch a full-fledged enquiry into the utilisation of funds in the scheme come in the wake of the Vigilance Department releasing a damning report on the Kaleshwaram project. The Kaleshwaram report has reportedly been submitted to Irrigation Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, and highlights the negligence of L&T and Irrigation officials in the construction of the Medigadda barrage.
The very future of the project’s utilisation is at stake now, with the government also studying the stability of the Sundilla and Annaram barrages — the two other barrages that are part of the Kaleshwaram project.
Under the BRS regime, opposition parties, including the Congress, were vociferous in their allegations of corruption in the execution of Mission Bhagiratha for years. The BRS government, however, had steadfastly denied any wrongdoing.
