Chennai: Anti-corruption watchdog Arappor Iyakkam has called on the TVK govt to initiate action on 42 corruption complaints over the past 10 years that alleged a loss of ₹70,000 crore to the exchequer, and to retrieve the money.
The NGO, in a letter to chief minister C Joseph Vijay, attached a list of 42 instances of corruption that they exposed and as many complaints submitted to the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC). The list included ₹6,066-crore coal procurement scam by Tangedco, ₹54,000-crore power purchases by Tangedco from private players, ₹250-crore scam involving registration of govt lands to private players, ₹5,300-crore illegal registration scam and ₹600-crore corruption in Bharatnet tender, besides corruption cases running into crores and involving former ministers in both AIADMK and the DMK regimes between 2015 and 2026. It said that if these measures are implemented, about ₹60,000 crores (20%) of Tamil Nadu’s total tender expenditure of ₹3 lakh crore can be saved annually.
The NGO said it was extremely important that those who indulged in corruption be punished within a time-frame. It said accountability would deter others from committing such corrupt acts. It also said the DVAC should be strengthened with tech experts, IT specialists, chartered accountants, and cyber experts, as the crimes involved various technicalities. It said public prosecutors also should trained to understand these cases. It said that the registration of contractors should be once every two years.
The NGO urged the govt to cancel tenders if only a single bidder is finalised. It sought that all machinery and site-visit certificates be dropped, enabling physical contact between contractors and officials, and eventually pre-fixing. It sought to prevent unnecessary splitting of tenders to avoid scrutiny and to avoid unwarranted tenders, such as relaying good roads again. The NGO sought the introduction of a roughness index assessment, which ensures that poor roads get priority.