Allegations of scam worth crores of rupees in the name of construction of pond have come to light in Madhya Pradesh. Reports received from districts like Shahdol and Damoh show that old potholes and potholes formed during road digging were declared as new ponds and money was withdrawn from government funds. Especially in Shahdol district, crores of rupees were spent under the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) scheme to build a pond.
In the action plan for 2022-23, 43 projects were approved, which included construction of ponds, ghats and beautification. And for this a budget of ₹7.48 crore was approved. Of these, 24 projects were for building new ponds, whose total budget was ₹ 5.75 crore. As per DMF records, the average cost of a pond is ₹25 lakh.
It is alleged that more than half of the projects approved to build new ponds were actually related to such ponds which were in existence for years. In other words, no new construction was found at the places where new ponds were claimed to be built. Similarly, potholes built on the side of the highway were declared as ponds and a payment of ₹ 25 lakh was taken for each.
A pit dug during the construction of Rewa-Shahdol Highway near Jora village of Jaisinghnagar block was declared a pond. Due to removal of murram for the highway, a huge pit of about 2 to 2.5 acres was formed on the roadside. Rs 25 lakh were allocated for this. There is a 20 year old pond in Jhiriya of Barna Panchayat of Jaisinghnagar block. In place of this old pond, approval was issued for 'construction of a new pond' at a cost of Rs 20.56 lakh.
Apart from this, questions are being raised on the money withdrawn for the construction of ponds in these Panchayats, because the money was withdrawn from the already existing structure by calling it a pond.
Shahdol Collector Kedar Singh says that investigation is being done in this matter by forming a team at the district level. We are investigating which ponds have been built in the middle of DLF in the last 10 years. We have Google's data, it is difficult to hide this in today's technology but it is true that old ponds cannot be recreated in this scheme. New ponds are built only when necessary.
Leader of Opposition Umang Singar has made serious allegations against the government in this matter. He said that sometimes a ghost hospital comes to Indore, sometimes money is taken out by turning the pits into ponds. Madhya Pradesh has been made a hub of corruption. We will raise this matter in the monsoon session and seek answers from the government.
Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Prahlad Patel says that cognizance has been taken of the matter. He says that this matter is of 2022-23, when he was not the minister of this department. Therefore they are not aware. In this matter, we will get information from the authorities and conduct an investigation. If any irregularities occur, strict action will be taken.
