Ludhiana MC chief recommends third party audit of Smart City Mission works

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, November 18

When questions are being raised over project works under the Smart City Mission in the city, MC Commissioner-cum-CEO of Ludhiana Smart City Limited Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal has written to the Principal Secretary of Local Government-cum-Chairman of Ludhiana Smart City Limited (LSCL), seeking a third party technical and financial audit of works under the Smart City Mission here.

Third party audit will bring transparency

The third party technical and financial audit will bring transparency in the works under the Smart City Mission. — Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal, MC Commissioner

It is learnt that the Punjab Municipal Infrastructure Development Company (PMIDC) had earlier written to the CEO concerned of Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Amritsar Smart City Limited regarding quality assurance of works under the mission. The PMIDC had also written that it must be certified whether the existing Project Implementation Unit (PIU) under the Smart City Mission is ensuring and checking the quality of works or not. Recently, the project management consultant (PMC) has been replaced with the PIU in these cities.

The MC Commissioner said the PIU was effectively monitoring works and ensuring quality here. In the letter, Sabharwal said the quality of works being executed under the Smart City Mission was being monitored and ensured by AECOM India Limited, a PMC engaged for the purpose. Subsequent to the discontinuation of the services of the PMC and replacing the same with the project implementation unit, professionals engaged under the PIU were effectively monitoring the ongoing works and ensuring the quality thereof, he said.

Sabharwal stated in the letter that it would be an added advantage if, in addition to the PIU, a third party agency was engaged in carrying out the technical and financial audits of the works being executed under the Smart City Mission.

Notably, opposition political parties had earlier also raised questions over some Smart City Mission projects, including the Smart Street project work on Malhar Road and Retrofitting of Sarabha Nagar Market. Some traders had raised questions over the design of the Malhar Road project and accused the LSCL of reducing the width of the road. In September, a delegation of BJP leaders had given a complaint to the Secretary of MoHUA against alleged misuse of funds in the Smart City Mission projects.