Dhar (Madhya Pradesh): A massive corruption scandal has been unearthed under the MNREGA scheme in the Manawar rural engineering services division in Dhar district. The construction of ponds in various villages has been marred by irregularities, with lakhs of rupees being siphoned off.
The malpractice involves projects worth crores of rupees, raising serious concerns about accountability and transparency in government initiatives.
The investigation has focused on multiple locations where blatant irregularities have been detected. In Jalokhiya gram panchayat's Machlai village, the use of raw stones for the pitching work in Neem Wala Nala pond has been identified as a substandard method that is prone to deterioration upon exposure to air and water. Moreover, black soil and sand, essential components for durability, were conspicuously absent from the construction. The allocated budget of Rs 49.61 lakh has allegedly been misappropriated, indicating a severe case of corruption.
Similarly, in†Kalukhedi village and Panch Pipalya gram panchayat's Kal Mathwa village, incomplete projects and discrepancies between allocated funds and actual expenditures have been flagged, pointing towards systemic corruption in project implementation.
Further exacerbating the issue, Umarban gram panchayat's Pipalya Mota village witnessed the withdrawal of the entire approved amount for pond construction without any tangible progress. Shockingly, in†Pipalya Mota village, Bad Wala Nala, fake bills and documents were allegedly prepared to siphon off the entire budget of Rs 47.62 lakh, leaving the construction work pending and raising alarms about the extent of corruption within the system.
These revelations underscore the urgent need for a thorough investigation into the MNREGA pond projects in Dhar district. The misallocation and misuse of public funds not only undermine the intended purpose of the scheme but also betray the trust of the communities relying on these projects for sustainable development.
