Kejriwal directs audit of Delhi Jal Board amid allegations of financial bungling

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said the AAP government has ordered an audit of the Delhi Jal Boards records by the Comptroller and Auditor General CAG to ascertain if there have been any irregularitiesSpeaking to reporters he warned that there could be a water and sewage crisis in Delhi in the coming days owing to the nonrelease of fundsA couple of weeks ago Delhi Water Minister Atishi had claimed the national capital was staring at a manmade water crisis due to the stoppage of funds to the Delhi Jal Board by the Finance Department and demanded Lieutenant Governor V K Saxenas immediate intervention in the matterKejriwal said We have ordered a CAG audit of the last 15 years of records of the Delhi Jal Board The CAG is a third party and the biggest agency in the country Things will become clearer nowIf someone has committed irregularities they should be punished If no irregularities have been committed then those who level baseless allegations will get to know he addedAsked about the fund crisis in the Delhi Jal Board and its possible impact on the ongoing work the chief minister said If the bureaucracy will not be answerable to the government it will be impossible to run the government There could be a water crisis and a sewage crisis due to nonrelease of fundsAddressing a press conference on the issue Atishi said strict action will be taken if any irregularities are found in the CAG audit of the DJBs records of the last 15 yearsQuestions were raised and it was alleged that there are irregularities in the Delhi Jal Board I want to remind them that our party has grown out of a movement against corruption We will initiate strict action if any irregularities are found after the CAG audit Atishi told reportersWe have removed ministers from their posts when questions were raised against them and now a CAG audit has been ordered she addedOn the delay by the Finance Department in releasing funds to the DJB Atishi said that the matter is subjudice and that it happened because of officers neglecting directionsEven after giving directions twice to the Finance Department funds are not being released The matter is in the court now she saidDelhi Jal Board vicechairman Somnath Bharti welcomed the governments decision to order an auditThere cannot be a better thing than this This reflects the transparency of the Delhi government the chief minister himself ordered a CAG audit This proves the honesty of the AAP government and our leader Arvind KejriwalThis also thwarts the attempt to politicise the Delhi Jal Board In the DJB we all have been working hard to serve the people of Delhi but the BJP has been trying to raise issues that have no merit So now the CAG audit will make everything clear Bharti told PTIThe BJP and the AAP have been sparring over alleged irregularities in the Delhi Jal Board since last month The BJP has accused the DJB of running a scam of awarding bogus tenders for the upgradation of its sewage treatment plantsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever