AAP government directs ACB to file FIR in three scam cases in Delhi Jal Board

NEW DELHI: The AAP-led government today directed its Anti-Corruption Branch ( ACB) to register FIRs in three cases of alleged irregularities in Delhi Jal Board ( DJB) which caused a loss of Rs 341 crore to the state exchequer.

The government has asked ACB to probe irregularities in allotting work to a private company at DJB's Bhagirathi water treatment plant in North-East Delhi at a highly inflated cost which allegedly resulted in a loss of Rs 158 crore to the government.

"The probe has been ordered following complaints that there was a gross violation of the CPWD manual," Delhi government said in a statement, issued late in the evening.

The second case pertains to alleged financial irregularities in the purchase of four lakh AMR (automatic meter reader) and non-AMR water meters with a purported intent to favour one particular company, which resulted in a loss of around Rs 150 crore to the government.

In the third case, it is alleged that 3.5 lakh non-AMR water meters were purchased on the basis of a single tender to benefit a particular private company which led to an approximate loss of Rs 33 crore to the state exchequer, the statement said.

Delhi government said that it has been receiving complaints from various quarters about these alleged frauds and directed the ACB to proceed in a thorough manner to get to the root of these scams.

"There are allegations of fraud purportedly committed by DJB board members, engineers, contractors, consultants and some other individuals are also involved," it said.

"The government has found that prima facie cases are made out in all the three matters. In the case of Bhagirathi Plant, a petition had already been filed in the Delhi High Court with an appeal to register an FIR in the alleged scam," the statement said.

Earlier, on the basis of Delhi government's request, ACB had registered an FIR to probe the multi-crore street lighting scam in which former Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit's role has come under the scanner.

Following this, the government had asked ACB to probe alleged irregularities worth Rs 184 crore in the construction of the Ring Road bypass ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.