This story is from October 20, 2016

Questions raised over purchase of swanky cars by govt during crisis

Questions raised over purchase of swanky cars by govt during crisis
Prafulla Marpakwar
Mumbai: The Devendra Fadnavis government has come under criticism for spending Rs 40 lakh on luxury cars, a day after TOI reported about the state buying the vehicles for tribal development minister Vishnu Savara and cabinet members’ official visits to Palghar.
Shramjeevi Sanghatana founder-president Vivek Pandit said it was high time the chief minister Fadnavis and Savara redraft policies to tackle malnutrition.
“At a time, when the district is reeling under a malnutrition crisis, instead of drafting a new policy, the government is spending Rs 40 lakh on swanky cars. It’s a wasteful expenditure. Cabinet members must move in state transport corporation buses to understand the plight of the tribals,” Pandit said.
Pandit, who has been spearheading an agitation for the cause of tribals in Palghar and the neighbouring areas, pointed out that not a single official who is associated with child welfare projects has a vehicle. “There are 13 child development project officers for Palghar district, besides a district child development officer, but no one has a vehicle. Even if the government cannot provide cars to individual officials, there should be a pool of vehicles which can be utilised in case of emergencies. At present, the officials have to either travel by bus or they are at the mercy of private persons,” he said.
Pandit further said that most of the government vehicles are outdated, have plied more than 4 lakh kilometres and no insurance can be claimed in the event of an accident. “Fadnavis must fill up all vacant posts and provide good vehicles. Officials do not expect brand new vehicles, but they should at least be in working condition,” he added.
Meanwhile, deputy secretary (protocol) S K Jondhale defended the government’s decision to buy the two vehicles. “We have purchased two cars—one for Rs 16.45 lakh and the other for Rs 19.97 lakh—as per procedures. After Palghar district was created on June 17, 2014, cars for distinguished visitors were not provided for the region, causing inconvenience to visiting VIPs. The new vehicles will now be at the disposal of the protocol branch of the district for use of not only the guardian minister, but also all visiting VIPs. Purchase of vehicles and malnutrition are independent subjects,” Jondhale said.
However, Jondhale’s one-page statement does not explain the October 17 order for procurement of the vehicles, which states that one of the cars has been purchased for the guardian minister, who at this point of time is Savara, and other for VIPs visiting Palghar district.
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