CBI registers cases against DJB officials

CBI today registered a case against three Jal Board officials, including one considered second in hierarchy, for alleged graft in awarding water distribution project in South Delhi worth Rs 520 crore.
CBI sources said today the case was registered against Member (water supply) B M Dhaul who was the then Chief Engineer, Praveen Bhargava, Chief Engineer, who was the then Senior Engineer and Pankaj Atray now Executive Engineer Projects in connection with water supply project for Malviya Nagar area.
None of the officers responded to SMSes seeking their reactions.
CBI has also named in the FIR Nagpur-based DRA Consultants and Shah Consultants besides a consortium of companies including Suez Environment, SPML infra and Degremont, the sources said.

CBI has alleged the Jal Board officials awarded a contract of Rs 520 crore to curtail the losses of Rs 51 crore incurred through non-revenue connections in 2011, thus causing a loss of about Rs 470 crore to exchequer.
It is alleged that the officials tweaked the conditions of the tender in such a way that it only benefited the consortium.

CBI has alleged tender conditions for uninterrupted water supply to these areas were "tailor-made" to suit one of the bidders.
The agency had last year registered preliminary enquiries into the alleged irregularities in the water distribution projects awarded in South Delhi on PPP model.

After the registration of enquiries, BJP leader Vijay Goel had targeted the then Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit claiming people will be forced to pay higher water tariffs as DJB has floated tender and that the tender conditions were "tailor-made" to suit certain players.
The allegations were refuted by Dikshit who had said the terms and conditions of tenders were formulated by technocrats and officers of DJB and its board has no role in it.
"The bid documents in respect of the four projects were prepared by DJB based on the model documents of the Planning Commission. Further, the bidding was through internationally- accepted and transparent e-tendering process," she had said.