A considerable time after allegations were levelled regarding rules being ignored in the Uttarakhand Building and other Construction Workers Welfare Board, the former chairman of the board and Labour minister Harak Singh Rawat stressed that neither had the rules been ignored nor had there been any scam in the board during his tenure.
Addressing the media at his Vidhan Sabha office here on Monday, the Labour minister listed the various works undertaken during his tenure. He said that the construction of a medical college in Kotdwar was also part of the party’s election manifesto. In pursuance of this, attempts were made under the employees state insurance scheme but the necessary permission could not be received from the centre. However, the then Union Labour minister had granted approval in principle for the construction of a 300 bed hospital. Following this, ESIC sought Rs 50 crore in the form of a loan from the board. Rawat further informed that in the documentation on the issue of construction of a super speciality hospital in Kotdwar, the approvals of the chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat and the then Finance minister Prakash Pant were also taken. The CM had granted his approval on page number 58 while the then Finance minister had granted the same on page number 75 in the note sheet. Following this, a government order was issued and the decision to provide Rs 50 crore in the form of a loan from the board was taken. While the Central government’s Bridge and Roof Company India Limited was made the executing agency, after signing of an MoU among the government, ESIC and the board the first instalment of Rs 20 crore was released. It was also decided at that time that the two next instalments of Rs 15 crore each would be released.
The Labour minister further stressed that all the steps taken by the board in this matter were taken as per the government order issued by the labour secretary. In case the approval of the Finance or any other department was needed in this matter, the secretary concerned was to look into it, not the board or the ESIC. He said that if there was any hindrance in this task, it was the responsibility of the secretary to bring it to the notice of the chief minister or the Labour minister. Rawat reiterated that all the work done in the board was done as per the rules.
Tuesday, 15 December 2020 | PNS | Dehradun
