TOTAL MUCK-UP: Report Finds Crores Misused On Projects That Were Non-Existent, Abandoned Or Unutilized The BBMP lost a Rs 280-crore grant simply because it didn’t prepare a report on waste management on time. Also, Rs 7.46 crore literally went down the drain as a proposed sewage treatment plant in Vrishabhavathi valley couldn’t take off as the Palike didn’t ensure land availability. This and more muck is being dug up by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India on the ineffective waste management policies of the agency. “The absence of complete data about the quantum of waste generated in the city, non preparation of contingency plan and inadequate institutional mechanism have rendered waste management programmes ineffective,” says the report released on Monday. It pertains to the local bodies for the year ending March 31, 2013. 280.17 crore due to the delay in preparation of master plan for garbage collection and disposal. The JNNURM had asked the BBMP to submit a master plan by February 2008 and detailed project report by April 2008. The BBMP outsourced it to Infrastructure Development Corporation (Karnataka) Limited. But the company sub mitted the reports only in December 2009, over a later. BBMP naturally lost the money, CAG report says. Of 422 GPS devices bought, 387 were installed. Though reports on vehicle movement were generated daily , the BBMP didn't use them to verify transportation claims, say the auditors. `89 lakh ride to nowhere: Even as the BBMP started mandatory segregation of waste at source from October 2, 2012, with its service providers, it didn't include a clause for segregation of waste in collection and transportation. In West zone, 17 vehicles used by the BBMP were registered as nontransportation vehicles. “ As a result, payments of Rs 88.95 lakh made on these vehicles during 2008-13 were fictitious,“ the report says. `99 lakh fiasco and Mandur mess: BBMP's failure in commissioning the garbage segregating unit for over three years led to dumping of mixed waste in Mandur landfill and unfruitful expenditure of Rs 99.46 lakh, says report. So what kept the civic agency from implementing it? Something as basic as the absence of inter `7.46cr goes down the drain: The storm water drains in the city are designed to carry rain water and sewage. To prevent sewage from entering the Vrishabhavathi valley, a sewage water treatment plant was proposed. But it hardly kicked off, resulting in wasteful expenditure of Rs 7.46 crore. Reason: the BBMP didn’t ensure availability of land before kickstarting the project in June 2008. Of the 28 works, 15 works worth Rs 11.24 crore could not take off due to this. Also, the BBMP commissioner didn’t ensure preparation of DPR, leading to defective planning. “Garbage was found burning in a sewage treatment plant and parts of the chain link fencing were stolen,” the CAG report reads. TIMES VIEW F or the past two years as the garbage issue kept rearing its ugly head in the city, the BBMP's only solution was to buy time or implement half-baked schemes. Now that the CAG report has detailed the several lopsided projects the Palike unveiled in the name of solid waste management and the money that was lost on them, the BBMP can no longer claim that it is cash-strapped. The Mayor's admission that Palike officials show little interest in the city's development is symptomatic of what ails the agency: lack of will, transparency and accountability. Until these are set right, more such stink bombs will follow. Govt rapped for discrepancies in Bhagyalakshmi scheme The Bhagyalakshmi scheme of the Karnataka government, started by former CM B S Yeddyurappa in 2006 to empower girl children of below poverty line families, has been faulted by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) for discrepancies in selecting beneficiaries. In the report tabled in the legislative council here on Monday, CAG said the women and child welfare department, the implementing agency, failed to maintain records of 7,814 beneficiaries in 2013. The scheme was also flawed in terms of delays and deficiencies in processing applications and inclusion of ineligible beneficiaries. This was because data was not updated periodically and fields relating to financial data were missing. There were discrepancies in birth and income certificates given by beneficiaries, it added. Audit scrutiny also showed instances of delay in release of funds to the LIC and reconciliation had not been done with it.