NUAPADA WATERSHED MISSION FAILS TO RESPOND TO RTI QUERY

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Thursday, 05 November 2015 | AJIT PANDA | NUAPADA | in Bhubaneswar

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The Watershed Mission office in Nuapada district is regularly violating RTI rules. The first appellate authority in the district is also indifferent towards the appeal of the applicants. They are in hand in gloves with their field offices, thus do not allow transparency, said the RTI activists of Nuapada district, adding that the violation is done knowingly to suppress corruption in implementation of watershed activities.
Parameswar Barik of Dhanksar village had applied to the PIO, District Watershed Mission office, seeking information on activities taken up in Dhanksar and Sardhapur villages of Khariar block under watershed development programme. He was directed by the PIO to deposit Rs27,440 as Xerox cost per page. Barik went for an appeal before the first appellate authority.
The Project Director of Watershed Mission of Nuapada, as the First Appellate Authority interestingly justified the cost without mentioning any reason. “I did not go for the second appeal, because that would have taken a long time for hearing.
Thus, I visited the field office of the Mission to deposit the said amount, but unfortunately, they did not accept the money stating that, the money receipt is not available in their office,” said Barik. Barik claimed that he had tried several times to deposit the information fees, but the PIO at Khariar avoided. “Such tactics are adopted by the mission office regularly,” said RTI activist Kshirasindhu Sagaria of Khariar block. “I was directed by the office to deposit Rs 52,000 for information of two watersheds in 2013. My first appeal against the direction of the PIO was not heard by the PD, thus I went for second appeal, which is still pending in the State Information Commission,” added Sagaria.
Villagers in every watershed complain about lack of transparency in activities. “Most of the activities are undertaken violating minimum accounting norms. I had verified the pass book of the watershed committee of Makarchuan Nala watershed. More than Rs18 lakh has been withdrawn but activities have been undertaken for Rs13.10 lakh,” said Barik.
“It reveals that, the rest amount has been misappropriated,” Barik told. He also claimed that the works undertaken are of low quality. “An earthen bund has been repaired in Dhanksar village by using machine at a cost of Rs2.10 lakh, although hardly Rs70,000 would have been spent. The papers show that the work has been done by employing labour,” added Barik.
It is revealed from the verification of documents produced by the watershed committee that most case records do not have resolutions of the village, nor the implementing agency (the Khariar Mission Office) has maintained MB (Measurement Book). There are also no order sheets and technical sanctions of the concerned authority.
The RTI activists of Khariar have demanded transparency in the watershed mission’s work. “There should be regular social audit by the villagers,” they said.

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