Public Money is not for wasting

First Appeared in The Goan Everyday

The recent BRICS summit in Goa has brought into focus the spending on sprucing up the State when it comes to organising a big event. There is no doubt that an event of the stature of BRICS will give a small state like Goa, prominence. The fact that the summit will end with a declaration to be called the Goa Declaration will add to the value brand Goa. By all accounts it is going to be a successful summit and that will add to India’s stature. PM Modi, right from the word go has been pushing an aggressive diplomatic policy and this is will be another feather in his cap.

However, can we learn from this event? Can we look at what could have been done better? So that after all the dignitaries have gone home and the dust has settled, Goa would have benefited a little in real terms, on the ground and not just hype.

The CM Parsekar has stated that the State has spent between 70 to 75 crores on making Goa BRICS ready. The Center was supposed to allot 200 crores for this purpose. Did they reduce the budget? Was the State forced to shell out money from its already stressed finances? Wonder if there will be any account given or will asking for an account make one anti national? After all national pride is involved.

If one looks at the list of works done they are all mainly in the realm of maintenance. Shifting poles, transformers, fixing lights, etc. So technically we spent 75 odd crores on make up. The widening of the Colva road is widely believed to be part of the BRICS preparation, if it really was, it is an ambitious project to undertake given the time span available. Ofcourse as Putin and Co zipped past, they may not have noticed it is incomplete. They cannot be blamed because good money was spent on ensuring it looked complete, this needless expenditure will have to be wasted in order to actually complete the road.

Black topping the roads, the Colva road was given two coats, especially when it was raining was a bad idea. Hopefully the surface which has already started crumbling will be good enough to give Putin and Co a relatively smooth return journey. Else, we can expect the PWD to give a fresh coat just before they leave their hotel for the airport. So it is clear the work done on the roads is not only hasty but also shoddy and will not last too long. However, public memory is short so nothing to worry about.

The stretch from Airport to Mobor had lines painted on the road, the kerb stones painted yellow and black, the missing road dividers replaced, rumblers removed, potholes repaired and all the electrical poles painted. Question is how was the work tendered and who supervised the same. Take the example of the poles which were painted. The workers simply painted the poles over the rust, dirt and holes. Was that specified in the tender or was it mentioned, first paint primer and then two coats of blue paint. Consider the Verna Bypass, it is partially done in some stretches, basically patch work. How will the contractor raise the bill, for patch work or for the whole road.

Is replacing rumblers part of the tender or will that be another tender and how long will it take. The rumblers/ speed breakers are there because of safety issues, so will the Government act quickly to replace them or will it be replaced only after a couple of accidents. Ideally it should have been part of the original tender ie removal and replacement of speedbreakers/rumblers. If the leaders needed a smooth ride, could they not have been taken to the hotel by a chopper or by boat like the IFFI delegates?

Coming to issue of tenders, we all know that the State Government got a firm confirmation about BRICS around March 16. Were the tenders for the different works issued in time or were they “short tender”, meaning urgently required so checks and accountability are bypassed with this type of tendering.

The banners, bill boards were plastered around the route. Wonder how they get accounted for and who does this job of checking “ordered v/s delivered” before the payment is released? Would be interesting to know.

There was a budget for the refreshments of the police personnel on bandobast duty. They did a good job and were on their toes continuously. Reports indicated that they were forgotten about and one of them suffered a heart attack. There was a small pickup going around distributing tea, not sure what else. Contrast this with the army style. At Trinity beach, where an antiaircraft gun was positioned, an army truck came by with dinner for the guard detail. Very impressive.

While most of the work appears to be cosmetic, there is one job that will benefit Goa in the years to come. It was long pending. The airport road has been illuminated. They did the job in a few days, so why was it not done for so many years?

The preparation and execution of the various jobs in such a short time points to the fact that if required the administration can get its act together and can deliver. What should now be added to this capability is planning. Imagine the same jobs delivered in time for BRICS but planned and executed. It would have ensured better and more efficient utilisation of public funds. Something that was lacking and needs to be addressed.