Congress accuses BJP-Shiv Sena of ‘looting’ Maharashtra fodder camp grants

Mumbai, June 21 (IANS) The opposition Congress in Maharashtra on Friday accused activists of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena of "looting" grants intended for fodder camps by inflating the number of cattle.

In a statement, Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan said that workers from the ruling parties in Marathwada region have allegedly secured grants by running fodder camps in the name of non-government organisations (NGOs) floated by them.

"The drought situation in the state is very grim. At such a critical time, the political workers are looting grants worth crores of rupees by submitting fake number of cattle at their fodder camps," Chavan said.

Former Chief Minister Chavan demanded an "audit of all fodder camps" to bring out the truth and stringent action against those indulging in the alleged scam.

Citing an example, Chavan said that during a random inspection recently, Beed Collector A. K. Pandey found that the number of cattle available in camps were lesser as compared to the grants given to them.

According to Chavan, the figures were inflated by as much as 16,000 cattle and grants to the tune of around Rs 7-14 lakhs were being siphoned off daily in the name of the "ghost" (non-existent) cattle by BJP-Sena activists.

"The government must carry out an audit of all the fodder camps across the state including Beed. This will bring out a scam much bigger than the one discovered," he contended.

The BJP-Shiv Sena have not yet reacted to the Congress' allegations.

Before the onset of summer, the state government had opened around 1,400 cattle camps to enable farmers in drought-hit regions to shelter their cattle with fodder and water given by the authorities through local NGOs.

The NGOs, many alleged to be floated by local politicians, were entitled to claim around Rs 90 and Rs 45 for large and small cattle to provide them upto 15 kgs and 7.5 kgs fodder daily.