Swachh funds: BBMP officials face ACB probe

BENGALURU: The Karnataka government has ordered a probe by Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) against the BBMP officials concerned for allegedly misusing funds released by the Centre under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
Based on a report by the chief vigilance officer of the urban development department (UDD), the government has ordered the inquiry under the Anti-Corruption Act.
BBMP diverted Rs 92 crore Swachh funds to roads
uring 2016-17 and 2017-18, Dthe Centre had released Rs 108 crore for the BBMP to take up Swachh Bharat Abhiyan programmes. But BBMP allegedly spent just Rs 16 crore and diverted the rest for road development and footpath re-modelling. Bengaluru city BJP spokesperson N R Ramesh had filed a complaint with the UDD seeking an inquiry into the alleged diversion of funds. He had also accused some of the former ministers of pressuring officials to divert funds.
The UDD conducted an internal probe and concluded that BBMP spent funds for other purposes. However, it held only BBMP officials guilty and dropped the names of the elected representatives stating that neither Ramesh nor BBMP officials provided any corroborative material to prove their involvement.