ACB Conducts Surprise Checks in Town Planning Wings Across AP

Vijayawada:The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) conducted surprise inspections in the town planning wings of several municipal corporations across Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday and detected irregularities, including unaccounted cash with some employees.

ACB teams carried out searches in the town planning offices of municipal corporations in Anantapur, Kadapa, Tirupati, Kurnool, Guntur, Vijayawada, Prakasam, Nellore, Eluru, Rajamahendravaram, Srikakulam and Vizianagaram, as well as in the zonal offices at Pendurthi, Gajuwaka and Madhurawada in Visakhapatnam.

The inspections were conducted following allegations that some staff members were indulging in corrupt practices and irregularities in the approval of building plans and the regularisation of structures under the Building Penalisation Scheme and Layout Regularisation Scheme.

ACB officials reportedly found unaccounted cash with certain employees and launched an inquiry to trace its source. They also found that mandatory records such as Vacant Land Tax registers were not being properly maintained. Several building plan approval applications were also found pending for long periods without any decision.

Officials said the inspections were still under way.

In Nellore, ACB DSP P. Ramakrishnudu said the inspections were conducted following complaints from the public alleging corruption in the town planning wing, including approvals for irregular layouts, encroachments, violations of setback norms and residential buildings later being used for commercial purposes.

In Anantapur, a team led by ACB DSP B. Prasad Reddy conducted searches in the town planning wing and examined files. Sources said officials seized certain documents and hard disks during the inspections and did not allow staff members to leave the office premises while the searches were under way.