Keshav Adhikary

Dhading, June 9:

Believe it or not, but a peon is involved in a fraud of Rs 1.6 million. The incident at Baireni Bazaar has come like a bolt from the blue for people. Moreover, it has also thrown up the fact that the sand mine project in the VDC run since the past five years is just a guzzling point for some officials. The corruption investigation committee on the sand mine case reported there was a trunning fraud of Rs 1.6 million with the direct involvement of office personnel.

The report said Rs 1.247 million for the VDC, Rs 0.163 million for Jana Kalyan Lower Secondary School and Rs 1.832 million for Bageshwori Secondary school was gobbled up by the peon Krishna Prasad Adhikary in collusion other staff.

The sand mine is spread on 240 ropanis of land and people have to pay Rs 125 transporting one truck of sand and Rs 200 to the VDC and Rs 5 per tractor and Rs 25 per tripper to the Bageshwori Secondary School and Jana Kalyan Lower Secondary School. Investigation revealed the staff have not handed over the amounts to the respective quarters. Krishna Prasad Adhikary has an annual income of Rs four million and Prem Bahadur Adhikary, who is member of the mine inspection committee and VDC staff, along with Ram Krishna Pariyar of Jana Kalyan School cooked up fake bills.

The inspection committee, comprising principal of Bageshwori school, Dhruv Raj Khatiwada, Ramji Prasad Marahatta, Shankar Bahadur Bhandari, Raju Adhikary and Surya Bahadur Adhikary, prepared a 17-page report highlighting the illegal work in the sand mine since 2003 AD to May 1, 2004 AD. According to a report from the VDC, Krishna Prasad Adhikary never submitted the amount meant for the VDC. He was appointed as peon by then VDC chairman Krishna Hari Shrestha two years ago. Locals believe that Adhikary has been getting a monthly salary of Rs 12,000 and has already bought land worth Rs 0.7 million in the district and is preparing to buy land in the capital.