Shimla, Oct 29 Himachal Pradesh BJP MLA Randhir Sharma on Thursday accused the Congress government of misusing funds sanctioned by the Centre for post-disaster reconstruction under the Post-Disaster Needs Assessment framework.
The legislator from Naina Devi, who’s also the BJP’s state media in-charge, said the Centre had approved Rs 2,006 crore to restore disaster-damaged roads and other essential infrastructure in Himachal Pradesh.
“While the people of Himachal Pradesh are still awaiting the repair work, Congress-backed contractors are celebrating Diwali with Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) funds,” Sharma told the media.
“The state government’s handling of the funds raises serious concerns about transparency and accountability. The money intended to provide relief to the disaster-affected communities and rebuild damaged infrastructure has been diverted to benefit politically connected contractors,” he alleged.
The BJP MLA also claimed that the earlier system required online tendering for works exceeding Rs 1 lakh, but the threshold had been increased to Rs 5 lakh for PDNA-related works.
He claimed that this change created opportunities to divide large projects into smaller contracts and award them to “favoured” contractors without adequate transparency.
Sharma also alleged that contracts worth Rs 5 lakh each were being awarded selectively and that complaints had emerged about payments being processed even where the corresponding work had not been completed.
The BJP leader called for an independent investigation into the alleged irregularities, stating that public funds meant for disaster recovery must be protected from misuse.
He also called for an independent technical and financial audit of projects where complaints of irregularities had been reported.
Sharma demanded that the state government disclose the total number of works sanctioned under PDNA, the number of completed projects, the amount released and the payments made to the contractors.
He questioned if the disaster reconstruction funds were being utilised for their intended purpose or whether politically connected individuals were receiving undue benefits.
Sharma also demanded that the Congress government publish a constituency-wise list of all PDNA-funded works, including details of the tendering process, names of the contractors, project costs, progress reports and payments released.
He emphasised that Central assistance for disaster reconstruction was meant to benefit the people of Himachal Pradesh, particularly those affected by damaged roads and infrastructure.
“Every rupee provided for disaster reconstruction must be spent on rebuilding the affected areas, not on benefiting politically connected contractors,” he said.
Sharma warned that if the Congress government failed to provide satisfactory explanations and ensure transparency, the BJP would raise the issue both inside the Assembly and among the public.
He reiterated that any misuse of funds sanctioned in the name of disaster victims would be unacceptable and demanded that the state government present a complete account of the expenditure before the people of Himachal Pradesh.
(PTI News)
