YEH MERA INDIA
When docs became looters in UP
Lucknow: In probably the biggest action of its kind in any state the Uttar Pradesh government put under suspension 20 doctors belonging to the state’s medical and health services for their alleged involvement in different aspects of the embezzlement of National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) funds.
The names of these doctors, mostly of the chief medical officer or additional and deputy CMO levels, had come up during the ongoing CBI investigation into embezzlement of over Rs. 10,000 crore of the NRHM funds. State’s Health Minister Ahmed Husain said Lucknow’s former Deputy CMO Dr A K Shukla was among those suspended.
More than 100 government doctors are under different stages of probe by the CBI. Two non-medical employees of the health department are also among those suspended. It is learnt that the government would soon grant sanction for prosecution of these doctors whose names figured in the inquiry.
The massive scam in NRHM funds was unearthed following the murder of two CMOs in Lucknow Dr B P Singh and Dr Vinod Arya, early in 2011. The matter was then handed over to the CBI for investigation. A Deputy CMO Dr Y S Sachan, arrested in connection with the murders, was found dead in mysterious circumstances in Lucknow jail.
Then in February this year, Sunil Verma, a project manager connected to NRHM works shot himself with his own revolver in Lucknow and Shailesh Yadav, a Deputy CMO died in a road accident. Both Verma and Yadav had been questioned by the CBI in connection with the scam.
The scam has seen the arrest of a former minister Babu Singh Kushwaha, CBI raids at the premises of another minister Anant Kumar Mishra and the arrest of a senior IAS officer Pradeep Shukla besides murders and other deaths.
When doctors lost the trust of the nation, not just of their patients.
Have toilets first than blasting Agni: Ramesh
Dhamra (Odisha): Launching green toilets very close to country’s missile test-firing facility. Rural Development Minister, Jairam Ramesh, said there is no use blasting Agni missiles if the sanitation problem is not solved.
Ramesh, who recently said he spends 18 hours on toilets daily, stressed that, one of the biggest challenges before the government is to ensure that all people get toilets.
“It is more important than the launch of Agni missiles. If there are no toilets then Agni is of no use,” he said.
“Bio-toilets can do to rural sanitation what Agni has done to external defence of the country,” Ramesh said after launching eco-toilets using Bio-Digester technology of DRDO, the defence agency for missile development.
Dhamra town in Odisha is about 15 km from Wheeler Island from where the Agni-V ICBM with a range of 5,000 km was successfully test-fired a couple of months ago.
Ramesh said, an amount equal to what is spent on security should be allocated for public welfare activities. “The budget of rural development department is Rs 99,000 crore while we spent double the amount of defence with a budget of Rs 193,000 crore,” he said.
Maintaining that he did not want any decrease in the budget of the Defence Ministry, he said, it should be ensured that an equal amount be spent for public welfare.
“There is no difference of opinion on this with me and the DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation). Even they want this,” he said. Aiming at discouraging open defecation and improving sanitation conditions, bio-toilets are based on DRDO’s Bio-Digester technology. It has been developed by its Defence Research and Development Establishment (DRDE), Gwalior and Defence Research Laboratory (DRL), Tezpur.
Bio-Digester technology was used to decompose biological waste generated by soldiers deployed in high attitude regions like Siachen and Ladakh, they said.
Muddled priority has been the bane of our development paradigm.
Why foodgrains meant for poor rotting: Court to Govt
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has asked the State government to explain why more than 8.65 lakh metric tonnes (mt) of food grains meant for the poor under the Public Distribution System (PDS) have not been lifted between April and November 2011 and directed to food and civil suppliers department to file an affidavit within eight weeks in this regard.
The court was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Shramik Mukti Sanghatna, an NGO working for the weaker section of the society, seeking proper implementation of the May 2011 directives of the Supreme Court.
While acting on the petition a Division bench comprising DD Sinha and Justice V K Tahilramani remarked. “In areas such as Vidarbha, there is no food and water available to the poor and here such a huge stock of food grains is just lying in some godown.” Advocate appearing for the petitioner informed the court that between April 2011 and January 2012, the Central government had allocated 11.90 lakh mt of food grains through PDS in Maharashtra, but only 6.23 lakh mt were lifted by the state government.
The court expressed its wonder that an additional stock of 9.62 lakh mt was allocated for the poor in Maharashtra, but the government lifted only 2.41 lakh mt of this ad-hoc allocation made for the same period. However, the state defended saying that deficiency had been caused because of problems in transportation and employees’ strike at the Food Corporation of India, from where food grains are lifted for distribution under the PDS.
Alibi is another name for inefficiency.
Families ‘exchange’ land,
In perhaps the most blatant violation of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s flagship Mahadalit Vikas Yojana, officials in Atri block pocketed the amount allotted under the scheme to buy plots, for distribution to landless Mahadalit families, by simply choosing families that already owned land, and then showing a “purchase” through an “exchange” of plots.
With the government setting aside Rs. 20,000 for each three-decimal plot to be given to landless Mahadalit families, and most of the 70 beneficiaries picked in Bansi Bigaha village already land owners, the racket is believed to be worth Rs. 14 lakh. While Bansi Bigaha earlier fell under the Atri block, it now falls under Mohda block.
The Mahadalit Vikas Yojana was started by the Bihar government in 2009-10. Under the scheme, there decimals or 1,306.08 sq ft of land was to be given to each of the 2.18 lakh landless families belonging to 21 Scheduled Castes identified as Mahadalit in the state. Following a series of stories by the media last month on how officials had exploited the scheme for own benefit, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ordered fresh survey for the entire state to prepare a new list of landless Mahdalits. Raniganj (Araria) Circle Officer Ramvilas Jha was earlier suspended while allotments made in Islampur block administration were suspended.
Documents with the media show that in the case of Atri block, then circle officer Prabhat Kumar Jha – who is now the district land acquisition officer at Gaya – impressed upon 10 land – owning Scheduled Caste village farmers to “sell” their plots at the government ceiling of Rs. 20,000 for three decimals. Measuring 210 decimals in all, the plots were registered in August 2010.
However, in reality, the land deeds exchanged hands within the 10 families. The villagers, who claim not to have received any money despite government records showing “purchase”, were reportedly convinced by officials and middlemen to agree to the exchange on the promise of getting half the money as well as Indira Awas Yojana benefits.
Mohda Circle Office papers show that the villagers swapped and cross-swapped plots in such a way that it does not look like exchange of land for land.
Then Circle Officer Prabhat Kumar Jha, however, claimed “every payment was made through cheques”. Asked how land was distributed among land owners in the first place, Jha said: “It is a matter of great surprise and I need to check records.” Admitting “huge embarrassment”, he added: “I have gone by the survey list of landless Mahadalits to allot land. I also remember having made payment to all land owners.”
Villagers, however, denied this. They said that while cheques of Rs. 20,000 had been shown to them, the money never came into their accounts. They were taken to a bank and made to put thumb impression on some papers, they claimed. The villagers also alleged that the government had not handed over papers to any of the 70 beneficiaries.
Mohda CO Yogesh Mishra admitted being aware of the “discrepancies”. “I have prepared a report as well,” he said. On why allotments had not been cancelled even after three years of the racket having surfaced, Mishra said: “Appropriate action will be taken soon.”
Some examples of Bansi Bigaha village’s land swap:
• Basanti Devi: Wife of the late Ranjan Manjhi, she is shown on paper to have sold 24 decimals to the government. The land was allotted to eight fellow villagers, among them Ajay and Nande Manjhi, sons of fellow villager Chandsur Manjhi, who had also “sold” 12 decimals to the government. One of the beneficiaries to have received Chandsur’s land was Ramphal Manjhi, the son of Basanti Devi. Interestingly, Ramphal is the government-appointed ‘Vikas Mitra’, whose job is to coordinate with the government and point out irregularities in any scheme meant for Mahadalits. Another of Basanti’s sons, Subodh Manjhi, was among beneficiaries on another plot.
• Sudam Devi: Wife of Sriram Manjhi, she “sold” 21 decimals to the government. Her four sons- Shaukin Manjhi, Lalan Manjhi, Awadhesh Manjhi, and Manoj Manjhi –got three decimals each as “beneficiaries” of land sold to the government by fellow villager Fekhu Manjhi. Fekhu’s own son Nagina Manjhi was one of the beneficiaries on plot sold by Sudam Devi. Said Sudam Devi’s son Shaukin Manjhi: “We were fooled by the Circle Officer on the promise of getting a share in land price and Indira Awas fund. We ended up exchanging plots, letting the CO and middlemen loot government money for land purchase.”
• Jethu Manjhi: “Sold” 12 decimals to the government, with two of the beneficiaries being his own brothers, Baisakhi Manjhi and Baburam Manjhi.
• Sudam Devi: Wife of the late Musafir Manjhi, she sold 12 decimals to the government. Devi’s daughters-in-law, Matiya Devi, and grandson Lavkush Manjhi got three decimals each from the plot of another villager. “We were illiterate people. We were told Indira Awas money would be given. We went to registry office and put thumb impression on papers we were asked to,” Sudam Devi told the media.
Families ‘exchange’ land,
papers show ‘sale’, officials pocket money
In perhaps the most blatant violation of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s flagship Mahadalit Vikas Yojana, officials in Atri block pocketed the amount allotted under the scheme to buy plots, for distribution to landless Mahadalit families, by simply choosing families that already owned land, and then showing a “purchase” through an “exchange” of plots.With the government setting aside Rs. 20,000 for each three-decimal plot to be given to landless Mahadalit families, and most of the 70 beneficiaries picked in Bansi Bigaha village already land owners, the racket is believed to be worth Rs. 14 lakh. While Bansi Bigaha earlier fell under the Atri block, it now falls under Mohda block.
The Mahadalit Vikas Yojana was started by the Bihar government in 2009-10. Under the scheme, there decimals or 1,306.08 sq ft of land was to be given to each of the 2.18 lakh landless families belonging to 21 Scheduled Castes identified as Mahadalit in the state. Following a series of stories by the media last month on how officials had exploited the scheme for own benefit, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ordered fresh survey for the entire state to prepare a new list of landless Mahdalits. Raniganj (Araria) Circle Officer Ramvilas Jha was earlier suspended while allotments made in Islampur block administration were suspended.
Documents with the media show that in the case of Atri block, then circle officer Prabhat Kumar Jha – who is now the district land acquisition officer at Gaya – impressed upon 10 land – owning Scheduled Caste village farmers to “sell” their plots at the government ceiling of Rs. 20,000 for three decimals. Measuring 210 decimals in all, the plots were registered in August 2010.
However, in reality, the land deeds exchanged hands within the 10 families. The villagers, who claim not to have received any money despite government records showing “purchase”, were reportedly convinced by officials and middlemen to agree to the exchange on the promise of getting half the money as well as Indira Awas Yojana benefits.
Mohda Circle Office papers show that the villagers swapped and cross-swapped plots in such a way that it does not look like exchange of land for land.
Then Circle Officer Prabhat Kumar Jha, however, claimed “every payment was made through cheques”. Asked how land was distributed among land owners in the first place, Jha said: “It is a matter of great surprise and I need to check records.” Admitting “huge embarrassment”, he added: “I have gone by the survey list of landless Mahadalits to allot land. I also remember having made payment to all land owners.”
Villagers, however, denied this. They said that while cheques of Rs. 20,000 had been shown to them, the money never came into their accounts. They were taken to a bank and made to put thumb impression on some papers, they claimed. The villagers also alleged that the government had not handed over papers to any of the 70 beneficiaries.
Mohda CO Yogesh Mishra admitted being aware of the “discrepancies”. “I have prepared a report as well,” he said. On why allotments had not been cancelled even after three years of the racket having surfaced, Mishra said: “Appropriate action will be taken soon.”
Some examples of Bansi Bigaha village’s land swap:
• Basanti Devi: Wife of the late Ranjan Manjhi, she is shown on paper to have sold 24 decimals to the government. The land was allotted to eight fellow villagers, among them Ajay and Nande Manjhi, sons of fellow villager Chandsur Manjhi, who had also “sold” 12 decimals to the government. One of the beneficiaries to have received Chandsur’s land was Ramphal Manjhi, the son of Basanti Devi. Interestingly, Ramphal is the government-appointed ‘Vikas Mitra’, whose job is to coordinate with the government and point out irregularities in any scheme meant for Mahadalits. Another of Basanti’s sons, Subodh Manjhi, was among beneficiaries on another plot.
• Sudam Devi: Wife of Sriram Manjhi, she “sold” 21 decimals to the government. Her four sons- Shaukin Manjhi, Lalan Manjhi, Awadhesh Manjhi, and Manoj Manjhi –got three decimals each as “beneficiaries” of land sold to the government by fellow villager Fekhu Manjhi. Fekhu’s own son Nagina Manjhi was one of the beneficiaries on plot sold by Sudam Devi. Said Sudam Devi’s son Shaukin Manjhi: “We were fooled by the Circle Officer on the promise of getting a share in land price and Indira Awas fund. We ended up exchanging plots, letting the CO and middlemen loot government money for land purchase.”
• Jethu Manjhi: “Sold” 12 decimals to the government, with two of the beneficiaries being his own brothers, Baisakhi Manjhi and Baburam Manjhi.
• Sudam Devi: Wife of the late Musafir Manjhi, she sold 12 decimals to the government. Devi’s daughters-in-law, Matiya Devi, and grandson Lavkush Manjhi got three decimals each from the plot of another villager. “We were illiterate people. We were told Indira Awas money would be given. We went to registry office and put thumb impression on papers we were asked to,” Sudam Devi told the media.
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