Corporators trying to shield erring contractor

By CT reporter
MANGALORE : Reports of late have indicated of the hush hush attempts made by a few city corporators including a former mayor to shield a contractor who ought to have been blacklisted for getting a bill cleared for a non-implemented work near Kadri Kambala.
It has been learnt that the contractor, MA Azeez, a resident of Nellikai had got cleared a bill amounting to Rs 44000 by trying to prove that the underground drainage works near Kadri Kambala had been undertaken, though the fact was otherwise. The irregularity came to light when preparations were underway to undertake this work following public pressure.
Presently, what has been learnt is that several corporators including former mayor Shashidhar Hegde were trying to shield this contractor and are pressurising the authorities to only get the misappropriated amount reimbursed by the contractor.
An investigation into this case undertaken by the commissioner also led to the revelation of the fact that two engineers Dejappa and Balakrishna Adiga were also involved in this irregularity.
Though the commissioner of the Mangalore city corporation was thinking in terms of initiating action against the erring contractor snad engineers, now there is a mounting pressure on him to shun action. It is left to be seen if axe would fall on the guilty in this case.