7 officials held in J’khand NREGA scam
Manoj PrasadTags : National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme funds, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme funds, The FIRPosted: Thu Dec 16 2010, 00:20 hrsRanchi:The Jharkhand Police has arrested seven persons for reportedly siphoning off Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme funds. The FIR, filed on Tuesday at the Lapung Police Station, accuses assistant post master Binod Jaiswal, SBI’s accountant Anil Kumar Sinha, and five officials of the Block Development Office — programme officer Samir Sagar, Rojgar Sevak Sanjay Oraon, Panchayat Sevak Mansa Kachhap, junior engineer Bindeshwar Singh and assistant engineer Rahul Kumar — of conspiring to corner the funds. The “beneficiaries” in the name of whom the funds were withdrawn either did not exist or did not receive any money.
The police stumbled upon the case after they arrested a wanted criminal, Bhola Sahu, on November 11 and recovered from him several “incriminating” documents, including 50 passbooks of SBI’s Lapung branch, 150 passbooks of the Lapung post-office, 250 job cards of workers and a dozen registers/muster rolls.“All of them were hand in glove. They conceived the NREGA schemes, prepared detailed project reports, maintained job cards and muster rolls and encashed the funds from the bank and post-office,” said Ranchi SSP Praveen Singh.Sahu told the police that Jaiswal, Sinha, Sagar, Oraon, Kachhap, Singh and Kumar were all involved in the scam. Two other accused, Apung BDO Moni Kumari and SBI’s Lapung branch manger Ranu Kumar, are reported to be absconding.Inspector B L Mishra, who is investigating the case, said the accused prepared more than 50 schemes envisaging either construction of roads or digging of ponds in villages falling under the Lapung block and withdrew funds under the MNREGA over one year.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/7-officials-held-in-jkhand-nrega-scam/725289/Orissa NREGA scam: Supreme Court pulls up Centre
Press Trust of India, Updated: March 14, 2011 14:55 IST
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday made it clear that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has to probe into the alleged misappropriation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) funds in Orissa.
The Centre had earlier told the Supreme Court that it is considering CBI probe into the issue but apparently had done little to address the Court's concern in last three months.
"We make it clear we are giving four weeks' time to decide. We make it clear if Centre doesn't decide we will step in", the Court said.
The court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed in 2007 by an NGO Centre for Environment and Food Security alleging large-scale corruption in the implementation of the NREGA scheme. The petition had pointed out that while some states in the north-eastern and Andhra Pradesh have done a good job in implementing the rural employment scheme, the others are far behind.
On December 16 last year, while hearing the PIL, the Court had indicted both the Union and the state governments for their failure in properly executing the rural job guarantee scheme and had asked them to explain as to why a CBI probe into the fund embezzlement should not be ordered.
"We are constrained to observe that the Union of India as well as the State of Orissa, prima facie, have failed to effectively and purposefully implement the provisions of the Act," the bench had observed.
"This has resulted in the deprivation of the entitled class from getting employment and receiving the allowances due to them in terms of the statutory guarantees available to them under the Act," it had said.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/7-officials-held-in-jkhand-nrega-scam/725289/
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday made it clear that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has to probe into the alleged misappropriation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) funds in Orissa. The Centre had earlier told the Supreme Court that it is considering CBI probe into the issue but apparently had done little to address the Court's concern in last three months.
"We make it clear we are giving four weeks' time to decide. We make it clear if Centre doesn't decide we will step in", the Court said.
The court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed in 2007 by an NGO Centre for Environment and Food Security alleging large-scale corruption in the implementation of the NREGA scheme. The petition had pointed out that while some states in the north-eastern and Andhra Pradesh have done a good job in implementing the rural employment scheme, the others are far behind.
On December 16 last year, while hearing the PIL, the Court had indicted both the Union and the state governments for their failure in properly executing the rural job guarantee scheme and had asked them to explain as to why a CBI probe into the fund embezzlement should not be ordered.
"We are constrained to observe that the Union of India as well as the State of Orissa, prima facie, have failed to effectively and purposefully implement the provisions of the Act," the bench had observed.
"This has resulted in the deprivation of the entitled class from getting employment and receiving the allowances due to them in terms of the statutory guarantees available to them under the Act," it had said.
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