Bharatmala projects granted to close friends of Modi, BJP: Congress
Quoting the CAG report, Jairam Ramesh said that Adani-led consortium failed to fulfil the condition of having experience of five years in building highways. But, the group was still awarded the project
The Congress has accused the Modi-led government of awarding projects in the Bharatmala Pariyyojana, India’s largest road and highways construction scheme, to the Adani group though they were not qualified to take on the work.
On Sunday (September 3), referring to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) report covering the period 2017 to 2021, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh targetted the Union government and slammed it for awarding highway construction projects under the Bharatmala scheme to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s friends and the BJP’s electoral bond donors. Only a JPC probe can unravel the truth, reiterated Ramesh, Congress general secretary (communications).
In a statement released by Ramesh, he said, the Bharatmala Pariyojana is aimed at developing 35,000 km of national highways to make freight movement across the country more efficient. "Yet, the most remarkable feature of the project has been the efficiency with which costs have been inflated and projects handed over to the Prime Minister's close friends and his party's electoral bond donors, as shown in a recent CAG report covering the period 2017-21," he said.
According to Ramesh, the Union government’s National Highways Authority of India has awarded a 250 km project to four lane the national highway between Suryapet and Khammam in Telangana to a consortium, in which Adani Transport was a major partner with a 74 per cent share. Further, he quoted the CAG report as saying that Adani had failed to “fulfil the condition for request for proposal regarding experience of five years” building highways. According to Ramesh, the Adani group submitted an experience certificate in the name of a different company, which belonged to a different sector entirely – power.
Despite being ‘unqualified’ to bid for the project, the NHAI in February 2019 for "reasons not given" said that Adani was qualified to bid and awarded the contract to the Adani-led consortium in March the same year. The cost of the project was ₹ 1,566 crores. Moreover, under the hybrid annuity model, the consortium was given 40 per cent of the project amount as cash subsidy.
"Other projects were awarded to one firm with strong BJP links and to four other firms that have been major donors to the BJP, as shown in the party's own financial statements," Ramesh also alleged.
On the basis of the CAG uncovering the 'deep-seated corruption' in the Modi government, the Congress demanded a JPC probe, said Ramesh asking a string of questions. Is there not a quid pro quo behind awarding these projects by the Modi government-led NHAI? "Is there no limit to the favouritism that the PM will bestow upon his close friends, colleagues and financiers when it comes to lucrative infrastructure contracts. Are Indian taxpayers' funds simply meant to line the pockets of the PM and his friends," the Congress leader asked.
Further, the Congress also wanted BJP to release its full list of donors in the last 9 years.
Ramesh alleged the CAG, whose reports the media once used to breathlessly report, has shed light on "deep seated corruption in the Modi government". "As we have repeatedly demanded, only a JPC (Joint Parliamentary Committee) probe can unravel the full extent of the Adani MegaScam in multiple sectors," he said.
Cost overrun of Bharatmala project
Last month too, Ramesh had accused Modi government of corruption and incompetence pointing out CAG has flagged an overall cost overrun of more than 100 per cent in Bharatmala Pariyojana. He had pointed out that "even a defanged Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has been able to expose the sheer corruption and incompetence of Modi Government".
Ramesh said, “The sanctioned cost of the 26,316 km of highways that have been awarded was ₹8,46,588 crore, as against the CCEA-approved length of 34.800 km at a cost of ₹5,35.000 crore. This means that these projects were awarded at a cost of ₹32.17 crore/km, more than double the cost of Rs15-37 crore/km approved by the CCEA. Despite multiple cost overruns, only 13,499 Km of national highways have been completed till 31 March 2023, less than 30% of the CCEA-approved length."
CAG questioned inflated project cost of Dwarka Expressway
The CAG has also raised concerns about the inflated project cost of the Dwarka Expressway, which went up 14 times from the sanctioned ₹18 crore/km to ₹250 crore/km.
The CAG has also highlighted irregularities in the Bharatmala bidding process - successful bidders not fulfilling tender condition, bidders being selected on the basis of falsified documents, work awarded without approved detailed project reports or faulty DPRs and the diversion of funds to the tone of Rs3,598.52 crore from escrow accounts. CAG has uncovered violation of toll rules, with NHAI wrongly collecting ₹132.05 crore from commuters in just 5 randomly audited tall plazas.
At the same time, NHAI lost revenue of ₹133-36 crore due to lack of provision for revenue sharing in concession agreements in two sections of NH projects. If this audit were extrapolates to the whole country, the overall loss to the exchequer and the commuters walit amount to lakhs of crores." Jairam Ramesh had then asked whether the Prime Minister will take action against the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways?"
