Mangaluru: Rs. 32 Crore corruption has been allegedly found in the Smart City Command Control Centre Phase-II Project. Opposition Member A. C. Vinayaraj alleged that a blacklisted firm from the Madhya Pradesh, which was banned in the US and UK, has been given a chance to work in the City.
Six companies participated in the tender and the tender was allocated to a company called Technosys Securities Pvt. Ltd. The company was blacklisted for failing to implement the project in Bhopal and Ghaziabad. Stepping Stone, the Project’s consultant, has collaborated to make the project available to the company. The consultant company itself is a radar hardware distributor whose e-hardware is plotted to be purchased by this technology company. He said the tender was corrupt and demanded an inquiry into the matter.
When Mangaluru City Corporation Commissioner Akshy Shridhar raised the issue of law, Vinay Raj said, “Don’t teach me law, I know. The Commissioner told him to sit down if he knew, much to the ire of the Opposition members. They began protesting and that is when the Mayor consoled him saying that Commissioner did not mean in that sense. “Though the contractor’s term had expired in November last year, 20 per cent of the lights were not installed even though the deadline was extended to November this year due to COVID – 2019. Commissioner Akshy Sridhar said that their contract has been cancelled and a new tender has been decided.
“The work was awarded through tender only through the scrutiny of IAS officers. The case was dismissed in Court over the firm’s blacklist. We have checked it out. One need not be an accused immediately after an FIR is lodged,” said the ruling Party’s Sudheer Shetty and added that their allegation was malafide.
LED street light works has not been undertaken even after the expiry of the term of the tenderers. Opposition Leader Naveen D’Souza demanded a clear answer on the issue.
Deputy Mayor Poornima, Standing Committee Chairman Shakila Kava, Hemalatha Raghu Salian, Kishore Kottari, and Nayana R. Kotian were present.
