The world is passing through a tough time over COVID-19. India too suffers in ample measure with the death toll rising alarmingly with each passing day. Assam too suffers huge loss as a result of the ongoing COVID-19. In order to cope with ever-increasing demand of fund, our people are generously contributing to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to enable our government to fight the dreaded disease COVID-19 effectively. But at this juncture, certain unscrupulous State government bureaucrats do not hesitate to loot the government money in the name of reconstruction of abandoned water supply project in the Public Health Engineer department. The news of this looting of public money to the tune of Rs. 25 crore was flashed in the front page of a highly circulated vernacular daily. It is shame for all concerned that while some ministers, our health workers, the police are toiling in an indefatigable manner, these looters masquerading as government bureaucrats keep looting money on this pretext or that. This is yet another game of looting unitedly by an unholy alliance of Engineers and Contractors. The tainted Engineer referred to in the news is an Executive Engineer who orchestrated the looting and has been in Guwahati for the last 15 years by managing those at the helm of affairs. Likewise, in the Agriculture sector we could read about the beneficiaries not at all connected with agriculture were instrumental in availing of the grant of the Union government. It is reported in a section of the press that the 'Self Help' groups of Agriculture have been given tractor to help the farmers increasing their products but in reality it now transpires that an 'Unholy Alliance' in Agriculture Department could embezzle Rs. 18 crore by supplying duplicate tractors to the farmers. The bureaucrats and officials found in the embezzlement should be paraded in the street after arrest.
Ashok Bordoloi,
Dibrugarh
Lakhimpur