From Our Correspondent
JOWAI: With the seizure of a truck fully loaded with Cast Iron Pipes (CI Pipes) jointly by Police and the Jaintia Students’ Union (JSU), a scam in the Department of the Public Health Engineering (PHE), RWS Division, Jowai has come to fore.
The CI Pipes loaded in a truck bearing registration number ML04A-9022 were detained from Moodymmai village on Monday night.
It is suspected that few officers of the department concerned along with some contractors are involved in this.
Sources alleged that the truck supposed to transport all the pipes to Assam to be sold in a black market was detained and seized by police at Ummulong Beat House on Monday night.
According to JSU, they first spotted the truck loading the material at the PHE compound on Saturday evening. On enquiring about the loading of PHE Pipes it was informed that all pipes will be shifted to PHE Store at Myntdu.
Interestingly, the truck even after loading parked whole night and day on Saturday and Sunday near Challam Syngkon Petrol on the NH-44 Shillong-Jowai road.
However, on Monday morning , the truck was found missing from where it was parked.
‘‘It was only at around 9:00 pm on Monday that we were informed that the truck was parked in a particular place at Moodymmai village,’’ the JSU General Secretary, R. Parien said.
The JSU and the police detained the truck and arrested the driver, identified as Leki Shadap.
Speaking to media persons, Shadap informed that this is not the first time he had lifted CI Pipes from PHE Office compound, Khimusniang, Jowai.
In connection with the seized CI Pipes, Shadap informed that he does not know the destination where to drop the pipes.
“I am waiting for instructions from a person identified as JJ Nongbri alias Tyron who is a class I PHE Contractor”, he said adding that he is the one who had directed him to take the truck to Moodymmai and wait for his further instructions.
“We strongly suspect that few officers of the department concerned along with contractors were fully involved in this illegal practice which is nothing but a corruption”, the JSU said. However, the Executive Engineer incharge Rural Water Schemes, CR Challam who had ordered for the lifting of CI Pipes said the shifting is only from PHE Office compound to Myntdu store located about 3 km away from the main office on Jowai-Shillong road but the trucks loaded with these pipes and the driver was arrested from Moodymmai village about 20 km from Jowai.
