SIT to reinvestigate Forest Department’s ‘ghost plants’ scam

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Chandigarh, February 24

After grilling by the Vidhan Sabha’s Committee on Government Assurances, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has assured that the ghost plants scam of the Forest Department’s Research Division, Pinjore, will be investigated by a special investigation team (SIT) headed by a DIG.

The Tribune broke the story about the scam in 2022, following which Forest Minister Kanwar Pal Gujjar had formed a panel of three forest officers to investigate it. The officers confirmed the misappropriation in their report. The issue was raised in the Haryana Legislative Assembly on March 22, 2022, during a Calling Attention Motion, where the government tabled the inquiry report and assured a vigilance inquiry.

However, after the DSP of bureau, Devinder Singh, gave a clean chit to the accused, IFS officer Jitender Ahlawat, the Assurance Committee took up the case. During a hearing, DG (Vigilance) Shatrujeet Kapur and DIG Pankaj Nain appeared before the committee and it was decided to form an SIT under Nain.

The inquiry report had revealed that despite no target available for new plants from the Forest Department, on January 27, 2021, a letter was issued to former contractors for extending their contract from January 28, 2021, to February 28, 2021. Their contracts had ended on August 31, 2020, and October 31, 2020. The contractors had executed works worth Rs 1.87 crore.

The panel found that the then Deputy Conservator of Forests (Research), Pinjore, Jitender Ahlawat, violated a standing order on tenders. Ahlawat was to grow 16.85 lakh new plants, while the detailed account reflected only 9.6 lakh plants were grown till March 31, 2021. It implied that 7.77 lakh plants were not grown, but the entire allotted amount was spent by March 31, 2021.

The panel said Rs 51 lakh was “embezzled” as it was meant to be paid as EPF/ESI/contractor profit, but instead, it was spent on labour, machinery or material.

The panel found that Rs 37 lakh was available with the Research Division from January 2021. The permission was granted for its use for growing new plants, which was not done.

An amount of Rs 42.44 lakh was spent on the maintenance of earlier-grown plants. In reality, these plants were not available. In records, it was found that the amount was spent on 3.53 lakh small plants and 3.11 lakh big plants from September 2020 to December 2020 and other works till March 31, 2021. However, in the nursery register, only 31,230 plants were available in October 2020.

The panel pointed out that for polythene bags, an amount of Rs 2.21 crore was released in February 2021 and Rs 5.61 lakh in March 2021. However, polythene bags were used for only 3.22 lakh plants in February and 6.96 lakh plants in March. The panel concluded that for February 2021, more filled polythene bags were shown than actual.

House panel takes up case

The Vidhan Sabha’s Committee on Government Assurances took up the case after a DSP of the Anti-Corruption Bureau gave a clean chit to an IFS officer in the case.