Audit flags lapses in BBMP's SWD department

Auditors have discovered serious lapses in connection with the Rs 490 crore spent by the stormwater drain (SWD) department of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) between April 2019 and March 2021.

From not providing proof of work and bypassing tender specifications to making excess payments and leaving avenues for double billing, the audit has, once again, exposed the civic body's complete disregard for accountability.

Auditing the civic body's various departments is the annual task of the Karnataka State Audit and Accounts Department. The report, which has been reviewed by DH, covers three financial years (2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21).

When contacted, Commissioner Tushar Girinath said the findings would be reviewed, but not all of them are serious in nature, while an RTI activist said the damning report explains why the infrastructure is pathetic and the tech hub floods repeatedly.

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In the two recent audit reports (2020 and 2021), the auditors found discrepancies in as many as 91 works and raised objections to payments of Rs 287 crore. The report asked the BBMP to recover Rs 14.19 crore for making excess payments. The 2018-19 audit report has unearthed a total of 41 discrepancies, with the disputed payment running to Rs 202 crore and demanded the recovery of Rs 6.65 crore.

Works mostly carried out in constituencies such as Bommanahalli, KR Puram, Mahadevapura, RR Nagar, Yeshwantpur, Sarvagna Nagar, Yelahanka, Jayanagar and Chamarajpet, etc, have been flagged for lapses.

The lapses

The auditors have flagged a total of 132 discrepancies in the SWD department over three financial years. For instance, the BBMP’s Bommanahalli zone, in a bazn act, spent Rs 1.87 crore on desilting roadside drains in three wards (186, 187 and 193) without the government's approval.

Similarly, a private firm was given work involving the maintenance of drains (Rs 90.86 lakh) in Jayanagar without taking approval from the BBMP’s chief commissioner. In Sarvagna Nagar, the audit stated, two separate bills worth Rs 1 crore were claimed after carrying out just one work.

The audit also red-flagged plenty of instances where there was no proof of the work done and the civic body refused to share them even after the auditors sought it.

Near Somasundarapalya Lake, the BBMP claimed to have asphalted the road along with fixing the drain. While it cleared the bill of Rs 56.27 lakh, there is no proof of work.

In another instance, the civic body spent Rs 1.45 crore on a drain work near Doddakammanahalli Lake but no photos were shared. Separately, the civic body spent Rs 3.93 crore on chain-link fencing at Sudhamanagar but no work has been done.

Other projects that are under scanner include the installation of trash barriers at a cost of Rs 22.76 lakh, the procurement of three robotic excavator machines and the desilting of drains.

In the report, the auditors pointed out that tendering projects was cheaper than handing them over to the Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Ltd (KRIDL), which charges an additional 11% commission.

Given that the tendered works are less than 5% of the BBMP’s estimates, the auditors suggested not awarding works to KRIDL as it causes a financial burden on the corporation.

RTI activist B H Veeresh said the BBMP did not have a record of fixing discrepancies raised by the auditors.

"As of 2019, the auditors had directed the BBMP to recover excess payments of Rs 2,800 crore made in 20 years. No action was initiated to recover the money,” he said, stating the audit report gives a complete picture of why Bengaluru’s infrastructure is pathetic.

BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath said not all discrepancies were serious in nature. “All the audit remarks will be reviewed by the public accounts committee,” he told DH.