Kollam: Mr S. Jayamohan, chairman of Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation, on Tuesday dismissed the corruption allegations against Cashew Minister Mercykkutty Amma as baseless and said the quick verification by the Vigilance was just a ‘procedure’ on receiving a complaint. There had always been ‘lobbying’ to destroy the cashew corporation, he said.
“The deals handled by the corporation are transparent. The major allegation is against a deal to purchase Guinea Bissau cashew. Proper advertisements were given and the tenders were floated by the corporation for the purchase. At first, the contractor was not willing for a negotiation with the corporation. However, another board meeting on December 15 could successfully finalise the contract by negotiating for a lower rate that has helped the corporation save nearly Rs 1.25 crore,” Mr. Jayamohan added.
The corporation could also save Rs 44 lakh as the out-turn of processed cashew was improved to 54lbs against the expected 52lbs, proving the quality of the cashew by the corporation. After the new board came into existence, it could make Rs 19-lakh profit whereas it had suffered a lossof Rs 2 crore when the factories were operated for just 10 days, which is a historic achievement, Mr. Jayamohan said. The corporation will also conduct social auditing during every hundred days of functioning of the corporation. The first auditing will be held in February, he said.
