Monday, June 27 2005 20:22 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Bihar flood-relief scam accused and senior IAS officer Gautam Goswami appears in for more trouble, as a case against him is likely to be referred to State vigilance in connection with alleged misappropriation of Rs 1.52 crore meant for Swarna Jayanti Swarojgar Yojana (SJSRY) and National Slum Development Programme (NSDP).

The inquiry report has been submitted by the then Patna district magistrate Sudhir Kumar who had unearthed the multi-crore flood relief scam involving Goswami, to Chief Secretary G S Kang and Urban Development Secretary Sunil Kumar Singh highlighting alleged irregularities in execution of the schemes, official sources said in Patna.

A senior official in Urban Development Ministry said the new case is most likely to be referred to the vigilance, which would then decide on filing FIR.

The DDC got the inquiry conducted by the district planning officer Diwakar Mandal and three other officers into alleged misappropriation of Government money following instructions by State rural development secretary.

The inquiry revealed that Rs 76 lakh meant for SJRSY and almost an equal amount for NSDP (Housing) was misappropriated between June and September 2004 when Goswami was the district magistrate.

The report says the Urban Development Department had allotted Rs 69.63 lakh to the District Urban Development Agency (DUDA), Patna, on March 25, 2004 for distribution among 11 urban local bodies in the district during 2004-05.

Instead, the money was given to 17 non-government organisations (NGOs) for giving vocational training to people below the poverty line.