Hyderabad: The GHMC vehicle repair scam is getting bigger by the day. Officials have found that around Rs 27 crore was misappropriated in a year in the GHMC transport section in the name of repairs and buying spare parts.
Random checks into vehicle repairs done in 2008-09 found that money was even drawn for repairing “condemned and auctioned vehicles” by producing bogus bills. The amount spent on repairs on some of the vehicles exceeded their total cost in some cases.
Neither computer nor manual records are maintained vehicle wise in the transportation wing. Around Rs 4 crore was shown for repairs for 200 vehicles which were still in their warranty periods. AP Lokayukta had earlier taken serious note of the issue and had asked for a report from the GHMC commissioner.
It had later ordered a detailed probe by the Vigilance and Enforcement Department into the vehicle repair scam. Following this, the civic body has put in place a new system for vehicle repairs. GHMC commissioner, Somesh Kumar, said, “We have been holding meetings to stop the fraud and make the system foolproof.
After I took over, I studied the entire system. In the next two to three days we will start implementing the new system to plug the irregularities. There will be pre and post checks before a vehicle goes for repairs not only by experts but also by our officials.”
Despite the state Audit department’s objection, the then GHMC commissioner had failed to stop these irregularities. Lack of supervision at the highest level was evident.
“We will verify all the authorised suppliers and weed out the fictitious ones,” said Kumar, adding, “We have decided not to supply fuel to the vehicles in repair. We are also making the billing system online to ensure transparency. I will depute an officer to verify whether the repairs are done.” Experts are of the opinion that the GHMC should hire vehicles rather than purchase them and should avail of the warranties properly.
