Corporator Narendra Borkar comes out with startling facts and figures after inspection of all crematoriums in Nagpur
Nagpur News.
The disturbing fact of supplying wet and inferior wood to the crematoriums for the last rites of the dead has snowballed into a major controversy, and exposed a massive scam, too, when the BJP Corporator Narendra (Balya) Borkar came out with startling facts and figures.
“When I visited the NMC-run Gangabai Ghat (Crematorium) today and checked the stock register of wood and “Gowri,” the register showed stock of wood at 205 tonnes and “Gowri” at 427 kg. However, when I personally checked the godown, I found only 20 tonnes of wood and 4-5 kg of “Gowri”. Thereafter, I visited all the crematoriums of Nagpur for inspection purpose. When I checked stock registers and godowns of all the crematoriums, I found a gigantic difference between figures of stock registers and actual stock in the godowns,” Corporator Borkar said.
Following is the table of stock registers and godown stocks till October 31, 2013.
“The difference in the stock registers and stocks in godowns conclusively points out a massive scam Rs 66,44,000 in the proportion of 1661 tonnes of wood X Rs 4000 per tonne in all the crematoriums. The media reports today have said that the e-tender mentioned use of 90 per cent Adjat variety of wood and 10 per cent other variety of wood for the last rites. However, the Adjat wood needs TP of Maharashtra Forest Department but the TP was never mentioned in the wood supplied to the crematoriums. Moreover, any transaction of wood requires permission of Forest Department and the weight of wood is mentioned in all such transactions. Have the concerned authorities ever demanded TP of Forest Department? The wood found at crematoriums was of Subabhul, Babhul, Orange, and other varieties which did not mean Adjat variety. Therefore I demand immediate seizure of all the stock registers, checking of entire payments to all the NMC-run crematoriums,” the BJP Corporator Balya Borkar asserted.
The Corporator further elaborated, “According to an advertisement published in newspapers by the Health Department inviting tenders for supply of wood to crematoriums, three firms/persons submitted their bids.
1) Mahesh Sales Corporation——Rs 4441 per tonne
2) Bhupesh Chamat—————–Rs 3345 per tonne
3) Surjit Saluja———————–Rs 3345 per tonne
“The Mahesh Sales Corporation’s bid shows figure of Rs 4441 per tonne which is more by Rs 1146 compared to bids of Bhupesh Chamat and Surjit Saluja – Rs 3345 per tonne. However, the NMC authorities dropped both Chamat and Saluja and accepted the tender of Mahesh Sales Corporation. The NMC is supposed to be supplied approximately 6700 tonnes of wood at the approximate cost of Rs 80 lakh. Had the NMC accepted the tender of Rs 3345, a lot of money could have been saved. I therefore request a high-level probe into the entire dealing including Forest Department angle within seven days,” the BJP Corporator Borkar demanded with an outrage writ large on his face.
