Kerala: BJP claims Left govt corruption in Jal Jeevan mission, national highway construction
By Aishwarya Nair | First Published Mar 29, 2023, 4:22 PM ISTKerala BJP chief K Surendran argued that the state initially said it would bear 25 per cent of the land acquisition cost for the development of the national highway, but later withdrew from it.
Thiruvananthapuram: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Kerala unit president K Surendran on Wednesday demanded clarification from state Public Works Minister Mohammad Riyas on the amount the state government is paying for the construction of national highways. He argued that Kerala initially said it would bear 25 per cent of the land acquisition for the development of the national highway, but later withdrew from it.
The BJP leader said it was indecent to back out after making promises to the central government. Surendran said that when Union Minister Nitin Gadkari raised this matter in Parliament, neither the Chief Minister nor Riyas responded.
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Surendran also levelled allegations against the Kerala government, claiming that the Jal Jeevan Mission of the central government in the state is heavily corrupted. He further claimed, "The project to provide drinking water to Ulliyeri, Moodadi and Chathamangalam panchayats in the Kozhikode district and surrounding areas is mired in corruption worth Rs 120 crore. Water treatment facilities are the target of widespread corruption." He also alleged that the Minister for Water Resources, Minister for Public Works and the Chief Minister's office are behind the corruption.
"Officials and politicians in Kerala are corrupt; other states are meeting the Jal Jeevan Mission's goals. Malappuram's contractor was modifying the requirements to win the contract. With the work experience certificate granted by the Malappuram Superintendent Engineer, he was able to secure the contract. Although he claims in the certificate that he has planted the plant at Ponnani utilising flat bottom upward flow sludge blanket technology, the job has not been done using such a technology, according to Kozhikode's chief engineer. The Malappuram superintendent was brought to Kozhikode, but the government relocated them to Thiruvananthapuram," he said.
The state BJP chief also said that quickly after the tendering procedure was finished, the Rs 559 crore project was quoted at Rs 614 crore with a 10% increase. There have been transactions in this amount of money. According to K Surendran, the Midland company, which is now in possession of the contract, was exposed for deceiving the KIIFB (Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board) project. The Union Minister and senior Jal Jeevan Mission project authorities will be made aware of these issues, and legal action will be taken, he said,
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