Govt spent railway safety funds on crockery, car rentals, foot massagers: Cong cites CAG report
New Delhi, Jun 10: Citing a 2021 CAG report, the Congress on Friday claimed the central government "misused" funds meant for railway safety on crockery, car rentals, furniture, laptops and foot massagers.
"This is how funds specifically meant for railway safety were used. This is the CAG's finding," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on Twitter.
Quoting the findings of the March 2021 CAG report, he alleged that the Narendra Modi government has been "misusing" Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK) funds on crockery, car rentals, foot massagers, furniture and laptops.
According to an official document, the national transporter spent more than Rs 1 lakh crore on safety measures between 2017-2018 and 2021-22 with a steady growth in expenditure on track renewal.
Government sources also indicated that the railways will soon reply to the same Comptroller and Auditor General of India's (CAG) report cited by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to attack the Centre over the recent triple train accident in Odisha's Balasore that claimed 275 lives and injured more than 1,000 people.
Kharge, in his letter to the prime minister, had said that all empty safety claims of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw have been exposed.
He further pointed out that the CAG report titled 'Derailment in Indian Railways' highlighted that funding for the Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh had been reduced by a massive 79 per cent. It was claimed during the budget presentation that about Rs 20,000 crore would be available annually, but this was not done, Kharge had said and asked why were the required funds not allocated for track renewal work.
However, data in the document showed that from 2017-18 to 2021-22, the railways spent more than Rs 1 lakh crore on RRSK work. In February 2022, the government extended the validity of RRSK by another five years, starting 2022-23.
Report number 22 of the said CAG report was tabled in Parliament on December 21 last year.
This is how funds specifically meant for railway safety were used. This is the CAG's finding. pic.twitter.com/7zuEhfEvb3
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) June 9, 2023
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
