A two-day-long inspection drive by officials of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has unearthed widespread corruption and irregularities by officials in municipal Corporations across the State.
The drive named Operation Clean Corp which began on Friday was based on complaints about officials bending municipal rules and delaying applications submitted by citizens. The VACB team came across hundreds of applications piling up in the Corporation offices in Kochi, Kozhikode, Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Kollam and Thrissur. The officials also identified cases in which building permits and occupancy certificates were issued quickly on applications routed through touts.
The inspection revealed that an Assistant Executive Engineer in the Kollam Corporation had received ₹15,000 in his account from a contractor and another ₹25,000 from an agent through GooglePay.
The VACB team found that a few commercial establishments in Kozhikode, Kochi and Thrissur were issued licence without the mandatory clearance of the Pollution Control Board. A large number of receipts issued for collection of building tax were not registered in the computer network.
Building rule violations were also detected during the inspection. The team found that an unlicensed hospital was operating in a building in Kollam that was issued commercial licence while the owners of another one had constructed three floors after securing a permit for two. The inspection revealed that several buildings had diverted parking space for commercial activities and even stairways were converted into godowns. Extension of buildings into footpaths was also detected.
In the Kannur Corporation, Vigilance officials found 15 laptops that were not distributed to beneficiaries of a programme to assist SC students.
The VACB team was led by Superintendent of Police (Intelligence) E.S.Bijumon and Deputy Superintendent C.Vinod. A pressnote issued here said the inspection would continue in the coming days.
