PROJECT TIGER ( Assam ): 37 weapons missing: CAG

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Link: http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/details.asp?id=apr0307/at06

 

37 weapons missing: CAG

 

By A Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, April 2 – Serious discrepancies in implementation of

centrally sponsored Project Tiger in Manas and Nameri National Parks

have come to light in an investigation by the Comptroller and Auditor

General of India (CAG) and what is most surprising is that a test

check of the records revealed that 37 weapons were found missing from

Manas. The CAG, in its report, which was submitted in the State

Assembly recently, said that there was a discrepancy in the arms

available and the arms register and as many as 37 weapons including

fourteen 315 rifles, eight DBBL guns and fifteen SBBL guns were found

missing. The report said that through the Park authorities had

reported that the weapons were snatched away by miscreants, they could

not produce any supporting detail such as place of snatching, FIR

number, police investigation reports etc, the CAG pointed out. The

report further said that a number of arms were found to be illegal

because of the failure of the authorities concerned to renew the

licenses and all these happened because a proper inventory of the

firearms was not maintained. The year wise position of ammunition

furnished by the field director for the period 2001-06 also showed a

discrepancy of 432 bullets and 2111 cartridges.

 

The report revealed that Manas National park was brought under project

Tiger in 1973 and the Nameri National Park was brought under the

project in 1990. But the failure of the State Government to release

the funds allotted by the Centre on time affected implementation of

the projects. According to directions issued by the Ministry of

Environment and Forests,

 

financial assistance released by the Central Government must reach the

field level within six weeks. But the order was not implemented by the

Government of Assam and test check of the records proved that State

Government took 76 to 253 days to release the funds received from the

Centre. In most of the cases, the State Government released the money

towards the end of the financial year, which resulted in accumulation

of unspent balances at the end of the year. Because of the failure of

the Manas and Nameri National Parks to spend the amounts released in

2003-04, the Government of India did not release any fund in 2004-05,

which seriously affected implementation of various projects.

 

The CAG revealed that the Government of India sanctioned an amount of

Rs 51.40 lakh to Manas in January, 2001 as hundred per cent grant for

raising four platoons of strike force similar to para-military forces

to contain poaching and other illegal activities inside the Park. But

the State Government failed to take any action for raising the force

and the money was adjusted by the Government against other schemes in

2004. With its inaction, the Government lost an opportunity to raise a

new force to contain illegal activities inside the Park and the local

youths were deprived of job opportunities, the report pointed out.

 

The CAG also revealed that during 2000-01, 87 wireless sets were

procured for Manas and out of those, 72 were damaged in three to four

years. Reasons for such large scale damage of wireless sets within a

short span of time were not investigated to ascertain whether the sets

were damaged due to wrong handling or whether defective sets were

supplied. In 2005-06, five wireless sets were issued to an NGO, which

was irregular as no approval was obtained from any competent authority

for doing the same. The report also pointed out that wireless coverage

both in Manas and Nameri was far from adequate for proper protection

of the Parks.