Refuting the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF)‘s allegations of flouting of tender norms and inflated costs in the implementation of the Kerala Fibre Optic Network (KFON) project, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the Assembly on Monday that the project did not entail any financial liability for the government, as the maintenance costs and loan repayment would be from the revenue earned through the network’s commercial operations.
He said the project implementation was awarded to a consortium led by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), under the Union Ministry of Defence, and consisting of Railtel, SRIT, and LS cables, after conducting detailed project reviews and obtaining necessary approvals.
Administrative sanction was accorded for a total project cost of ₹1,028.20 crore, including maintenance cost of ₹104 crore for one year. But, in the tender process, the operation and maintenance cost for seven years was also included. As per this, the maintenance cost was ₹728 crore. However, the BEL consortium had quoted ₹363 crore for the same.
The consortium was thus chosen for implementing the project at a total cost of ₹1,628.35 crore, which included GST also. Misleading allegations were now being raised by taking into account just the maintenance cost for one year, instead of that for seven years. The allegation that the government would suffer a loss of ₹500 crore was baseless as it did not have any financial liability , said Mr. Vijayan.
AI camera project
Meanwhile, Industries Minister P. Rajeeve termed baseless the allegations levelled by the UDF regarding corruption in the project for installing Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered cameras on the State’s roads.
Speaking in the Assembly during the discussion on the supplementary demands for grants, Mr. Rajeeve said results showed that the State could take pride in the surveillance system. There was a drastic fall in the number of road accidents and accident deaths after the cameras were installed.
Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu had sent teams to study Kerala’s experience with the AI cameras, he said. There was no basis in the Opposition charge that the project involved corruption to the tune of ₹232 crore, he said.
The Minister also drew attention to a study undertaken during the Oommen Chandy government’s tenure for installing surveillance cameras. A ₹79 crore CAPEX model and a ₹150 crore BOOT annuity model with guaranteed quarterly payments for five years were studied at the time, he said.
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan accused the Minister of skirting the real issue which centred on the large-scale financial irregularity involved in the project. The State suffered a loss as it received outdated cameras in the place of cheaper, advanced ones. Objections of the Finance Department were bypassed to secure the deal, Mr. Satheesan said adding that companies had formed a ‘cartel’ to secure the contract.
Walkout
The UDF staged a walkout in the Assembly in protest against the government’s reluctance to order investigation into the AI-camera and KFON projects and the allegations regarding the financial transaction between Cochin Minerals and Rutile Limited (CMRL) and Exalogic Solutions Pvt Ltd, the company run by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s daughter T.Veena.
