An audit of Nabard-funded rural connectivity projects has brought out several lacunae in planning, prioritisation and execution of works for roads and bridges, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has reported.

While project proposals and detailed project reports were not submitted on time, the DPRs were found incomprehensible and not prepared based on site survey, resulting in deviations from designs and sanctioned estimates.

Moreover, payments were released to contractors without proper scrutiny of bills and records, leading to undue financial benefit to them.

At the same time, the projects were also shown as “physically completed” without executing important items of works provided for in the DPRs.

The audit found out that five out of the six divisions sampled did not test the material before its utilisation for Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) works.

“Monitoring and follow-up were inadequate and the project completion certificates/reports were also not submitted. Impact of these projects on the socio-economic development of the rural areas, where these were implemented, was not carried out during the five-year period of audit coverage,” the audit noted.

The RIDF was introduced by the Centre in 1995-96 under Nabard to provide loans for projects which were taken up, but the projects remained incomplete due to inadequate resources with the state governments.

The eligible activities for Nabard loans are classified under three broad categories — agriculture and related sectors, social sector besides rural connectivity sector. The activities covered under rural connectivity are village roads and bridges.

The projects for rural connectivity under the RIDF have been implemented in Meghalaya since 1996 and as of March 2018, 593 projects (roads: 463 and bridges:130) with cumulative length of roads of 1,598.29km have been sanctioned, the audit report stated.

Of these, 131 projects (roads:122 and bridges: 9) were sanctioned by Nabard during the review period (from 2013-14 to 2017-18).

Out of 131 projects, 89 projects were not due for completion by March 2018. Although 131 projects were approved by Nabard for execution, only 42 projects were due for completion by March 2018.

The audit found that 35 projects were completed on time and the remaining seven could not be completed within the stipulated timeframe prescribed by Nabard.

Out of the sampled 40 projects (37 roads and 3 bridges) for audit, 20 projects were completed and 20 were in progress as of March 2018. Out of the completed projects, seven were completed with delays ranging from 30 to 210 days.

Even the ongoing projects have crossed their stipulated date of completion by 30 to 540 days. The reasons for the delay in completion of the projects were not available on record.

Further, during 2013-18, the state government submitted proposals for 175 projects (roads and bridges) estimated to cost Rs 366.34 crore. Nabard approved 131 projects out of these and sanctioned Rs 271.05 crore (90 per cent of the project cost) as interest-bearing loan. The rest 44 projects costing Rs 95.29 crore were not sanctioned due to non-fulfilment of the prescribed criteria.