Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on July 2 suspended senior IAS (Indian Administrative Services) officer and former Principal Secretary, Environment R K Sharma for sanctioning a grant of Rs 37 crore for the Taj Corridor Scheme in Agra against the prescribed norms.

Sharma had been shifted from the state environment department last week for sanctioning the said amount against the prescribed norms by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for carrying out construction work behind the Taj Mahal, the world famous heritage monument, an official spokesman said.

Taking strong exception to reports of discrepancies in the project, the Chief Minister also set up a special technical team for physical verification of the construction works carried out there, which reached Agra on July 2, the spokesman said.

The team has been asked to submit its report before the onset of monsoon so that the actual position of the construction works could be known, the spokesman said.

Meanwhile, in response to the recent utterance by Union Tourism Minister Jagmohan against the state government regarding the project, the Chief Minister shot off a letter to him stating that the Taj corridor project was the brainchild of the Union Environment Department and the concerned officials had full knowledge of it.

"The concerned officials of the Union government continuously took part in the meetings held for finalising the project but never raised any objections," she said in her letter.

PTI