Protesting Panchayat members urge Centre, LG to hold inquiry into corrupt practices in RDD

06/12/2019

JAMMU, Dec 5: All Jammu Kashmir Panc-hayat Conference (AJKPC) -a frontline organisation fighting for the empowerment of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in J&K-on Thursday blamed the officials of Rural Development Department (RDD) for scuttling effective implementation of MGNREGA scheme in J&K.
On the third day of ongoing 168-hour-long hunger strike started by the elected Panchayat members under the leadership of AJKPC state president Anil Sharma against the non-payment of Rs 1,000-crore MGNREGA liabilities, the elected Panchayat members said that the MGNREGA liabilities had been created in J&K due to ill-intentions of RDD officials, including Junior Engineers (JEs) and Village Level Workers (VLOs).
"The RDD has become a den of corruption where the officers from lower rank to higher rank are involved in making money through illegal means. For getting administrative approval to clearing the estimation of plans, the RDD officials always demand for corruption. Even the MLAs and the MPs have not been able to keep a check on these malpractices. The RDD officials always look for 30 percent commission for any development activity in rural areas which is shameful and unfortunate," Anil Sharma, AJKPC president said while addressing the protesting Sarpanches and Panches at the site of hunger strike.
Sharma said it was due to these malpractices that the Centre's flagship MGNREGA scheme had not been able to yield its desired results even after its commencement many years ago.
"With the provision of transfer of money directly into the accounts of beneficiaries and suppliers who had been supplying material for development works in rural areas, these corrupt officers of RDD have been finding it difficult to make money through illegal means and they are now resorted to creating obstacles in clearing liabilities of MGNREGA scheme," he said. The AJKPC leader urged the Union Government and the Lieutenant Governor of J&K Girish Chandra Murmu to order an inquiry to weed out these corrupt practices from the RDD so that all central sponsored schemes including MGNREGA can reach to rural masses in an effective and transparent manner.
Meanwhile, the Sarpanches and Panches from various parts of Kashmir Valley and Jammu division continued their hunger strike at Dogra Chowk and raised noisy slogans against the RDD and the Secretary of the department Sheetal Nanda for misleading the Union government and the Lieutenant Governor over MGNREGA issue.

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