Mamata seeks limiting panchayat bodies' power to issue tenders

Kolkata, May 31 Gauging that the charges of corruption are fast becoming a concern for her government, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday called for limiting the rural panchayat bodies' power to issue tenders to eliminate the avenues of corruption.

Speaking at the administrative review meeting in Bankura district on Tuesday, the Chief Minister directed District Magistrate Radhika Aiyar to limit the tendering avenues for the state panchayat bodies to avoid unnecessary delays, and eliminate corruption.

"It has come to my notice that the functionaries at the panchayats often delay the entire tendering process to ensure that their own confidants get the assignments. This delays the entire process of work for which my government and my party gets the bad name. So, I ask you to get the tendering process done by the different state government departments as far as possible," the chief minister said.

However, the district magistrate and the other bureaucrats in Bankura district administration too could not escape the wrath of the chief minister on the issue of the delay in completion of the announced projects.

"Some projects have not been completed even after six years from its announcement. The district administration is just sending the routine 'work in progress' report to the state secretariat. Your ears should be boxed," the chief minister said addressing the district magistrate on Tuesday.

She said that because of the lackadaisical approach of a section of the state government employees, common people are denied legitimate services for which her government is receiving a bad name.

On Monday, at a similar administrative review meeting in Purulia, District Magistrate Rahul Majumdar had to face the wrath of the Chief Minister on the issue of corruption.

Reacting to complaints about irregularities in collection of taxes from the local brick kilns in the district by a section of the state government officials, the chief minister on Monday told the Purulia district magistrate that had this been done by any of her party functionaries she would have slapped him/ her.

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