In a recent case, the culprits identified are the ones who were trusted to handle funds and do the job honestly for their village folks. In village Rasatpal in Dungurpur district, the sarpanch and the secretary of the panchayat samiti have been found to have siphoned off funds worth Rs 1.34 crore. The money was spent on benefiting some people in the supply chain of material for work undertaken. This has been officially described as a 'fraud', and shockingly, it was going on for three years.

But one good element in the episode is that the district collector, after an inquiry report, has ordered these corrupt people to refund the amount swindled into the exchequer. This is really an exemplary punitive action, and might serve as a lesson for those who might be similarly indulging in frauds with the NREG funds. The administration hopes that the money would be recovered, as in a similar case in the past, the swindled money was recovered, and it was about Rs 58 lakh.

But this also shows that such frauds have been going on for long, and there is urgent need for the State government to spread the network of inquiry to other places from where such complaints of fraud are frequently received. A report of social audit in Barmer district had pointed out that the village sarpanch had refused to submit for audit the records about the funds used for the payment of wages to workers engaged under the NREG scheme.

There are similar reports about the BPL cards issued to a large number of “rich” people. The State Minister for Rural Development recently admitted that people who own their homes, and have a tractor for farming, have been found to draw cheap ration under the BPL scheme. What they do is “grease the palm” of the local officials to put the sign of a “BPL family” on the house-wall of such unentitled families, paving the way for them to get a BPL card. Under the new scheme, poor people are entitled to get rice @ Rs 2 per kg, plus pulses and kerosene oil. This fraud must be stopped and the corrupt officials punished. The scheme needs basic reform in distribution system.

There is another fraud going on in the villages. This is in the form of primary schools with zero students on the rolls. The teachers have been regularly getting their monthly salaries even though they do no teaching work. There were as many as 356 such schools on files where not a single student is to be found. And, shockingly, the State Education Department is in the know of this form of corruption going on. There were 51 such studentless schemes in Ajmer district alone. Is this the way the Congress government wants to spread the mission of “Education for All”?

But there is one plus side also. The State government recently took a meaningful step to restore a few lakh of “Waqf” properties to the State Board. These are the shops and open lands which have been in illegal possession of various state departments, including the PWD. The government, on a complaint of the Waqf Board, undertook a survey of such unauthorised occupations, and identified these properties as belonging to the Waqf Board. The government has subsequently ordered these departments to pay regular rent to the board. This is expected to bring about Rs 60 lakh monthly revenue to the funds-starved board. These properties are spread in several districts, like Jaipur (11), Alwar (24). Ironically, the other big illegal occupant is the state police. (IPA)