Margao, Oct 20 (TOI): United Goans Foundation (UGF) on Monday filed two separate cases of corruption with the Margao town police station against councilors and officers of the Margao municipal council (MMC), besides MLAs Digambar Kamat and Vijai Sardesai in connection with tenders of solid waste management plant and leasing municipal land for erecting Wi-fi towers.
Addressing mediapersons, UGF president Ashish Kamat pointed out that as Fomento has had no experience in solid waste management, it claimed to have entered into a consortium with IL&FS waste management and urban services and IL&FS Ecosmart. "The concessionaire agreement was signed only by Fomento. There was no document in the records of the MMC which proves that Fomento had signed the agreement on behalf of the two IL&FS companies. Further only two bids were received for the tender in violation of general financial rules," Kamat said, adding that "another fraud was committed where a firm called urban management consultant was appointed as a consultant for a 6 lakh project without floating a tender." The complaint is lodged against Margao MLA Digambar Kamat, Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai, ex-Fatorda MLA Damodar Naik, and other past and present members of the high powered committee and all the sitting councilors of MMC.
The second complaint, UGF secretary Avinash Tavares pointed out, has been lodged against certain individuals of a consultancy firm and a telecommunication firm. The consultancy firm, UGF said in the complaint, fraudulently subleased municipal land to the telecommunication firm at 10 locations within the jurisdiction of MMC for a period of 15 years for proposed consideration of 3000 per month per plot.
Claiming that Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai launched this service on his birthday and had promoted the free wi-fi service as a 'Vijai Sardesai Initiative', UGF said that Sardesai along with two individuals of the consultancy firm, chairperson and chief officer of the MMC, "entered into a criminal conspiracy and erected wi-fi towers in the jurisdiction of MMC sans permissions and legal requirements.
Sardesai, when reached for his comment, said "All this appears to be a municipal polls eve stunt. Let the law take its own course". Kamat was not available for his comments.