After Near-Disaster, Firms Building Madhya Pradesh Dam Blacklisted; Scam Shadow Remains
NDTV
The project is already among those being investigated since 2018 in a Rs 3,000-crore corruption scam in the e-tendering system; BJP denies links
Madhya Pradesh's BJP government has blacklisted two companies — allegedly linked with party leaders — for not completing the construction of a dam on the river Karam, which was at the centre of a near-disaster in Dhar district over the past week. This project, past deadline by a year, is at the centre of a corruption scam too.
The Rs 113-crore dam is one part of the larger irrigation plan — total worth Rs 304 crore — which includes canals.
The blacklisting now, at the very least, means these two firms — Delhi's ANS Construction and Gwalior's Sarthi Construction — aren't eligible for any more government contracts. There are allegations, however, that these firms had been blacklisted earlier too, only to then get projects again. The government has not responded to that.
Work for the dam was allotted to ANS in 2018 at Rs 113 crore. This firm immediately hired Gwalior firm Sarthi for it, at less than Rs 100 crore. This sub-contract to Sarthi had the government's necessary approval.
