India Environment Portal Knowledge for change

About us Contact us
downtoearth-subscribe

Browse by subjects

Embankments...

  • 29/11/1999

politicians: A means to generate funds for the party's coffers

• Used the concept of shramdan (voluntary labour) to exploit the people

• Awarded contracts to their relatives and party workers

• Failed to maintain proper accounts

contractors: Saw earthwork as an easy way to make a fast buck

• Exploited loopholes in the supply of earth and boulders; boulders supplied at one site would be shifted to another

• Could supply the same boulders to three different sites on paper

• Lobbied with engineers to grab all such contracts

engineers: An easy way to get commissions from contractors

• Scope for corruption. Making money while maintaining and rebuilding embankments. Poor maintenance led to rebuilding of embankments.

• Scope for letting criminals shift material from one site to another so that it could be billed at both sites

criminals: Could follow contractors into bidding for earthwork contracts

• Establish close links with bureaucrats, politicians and engineers with the money earned

• Fund political parties as this provided them some protection from the law

• Gave them a say in the running of the state

people: An unnecessary evil. Which prolonged floods and increased suffering

• Imparted a false sense of security to them

• Displaced poor farmers and rendered them landless

• Forced the poor to take to crime

Related Content