Pics by Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network-Mangalore

Mangalore, Oct 16: The blame game at review meeting to discuss on the progress of construction work of a new block at Lady Goschen hospital hampered it, even as the district in charge minister Ramanath Rai warned all the stake holders to pace up the work as the snail-like progress continued to bother the district administration.

While deputy commissioner A B Ibrahim whipped the contractor and the MRPL for causing delay in erecting the new block earmarked at RS 21.74 crores that had to be completed by the end of this year, Abhay Chandra Jain was the first to join his voice passing stern directives to the general manager of the Mangalore Refinery Petrochemical Limited (MRPL), Susheel Chandra to release the pending bills in time.

Though MRPL currently has released around RS 7 crores, the company failed the meet the requirement of the contractor who handed over the bill showing spared amount to Rs 8.50 crores. The health and family welfare minister U T Khader reprimanded the contractor for fusing delay citing late payment and ordered him to carry out the work until his balance payment crosses Rs three crore.

“Why did you take up the tender from the government, if you had to wait for the inflow of fund?” Khader questioned the contractor. However, the contractor remained mum as warnings poured out against him from ministers of the state and top bureaucrats of the district.

Moreover, the district in charge minister Rai who chaired the meeting advised the MRPL to keep up the promise of releasing 80% of the bill submitted by the concerned authority within a week. The general manager of the MRPL nodding to the requests told the company was committed to complete the work very soon that was taken under corporate social responsibility.

However, the lack of team work and internal bickering came to fore, with all the ministers pressing to pick up the task as a team work and trying to pacify the fight between the MRPL and the deputy commissioner, Ibrahim. The health minister also hinted the delay due to various reasons has put the elected representative on the fix before the general public.