For Chief Secy, missing Rs 17 cr is ‘side issue’

After avoiding the media for two days, Subramaniam met reporters at five pm. But he wanted only to talk about the diversion of funds and not the scam of siphoning off Rs 17 crore flood relief funds. Diversion of funds from one account to another is a common practice in the government in times of emergency and hardly a matter of inquiry, say IAS officers. ‘‘When the allotments come, we reinstate the funds,’’ said a DM.

On September 13, the Relief Commissioner-in-charge Shishir Sinha forwarded the file which detailed the irregularities in flood relief funds to the chief secretary. He sat on it until December 23, till the audit wing made inquired about the file and returned it with a one-line noting: ‘‘The relief commissioner may take appropriate action.’’

Today, the chief secretary—who described the relief work as ‘‘more than satisfactory’’—got irritated when he was asked about the disappeared funds. ‘‘You can write whatever you want to,’’ he said. ‘‘I was not procuring the material or paying for it.’’

On repeated questions about the BSSIC’s stand that they had not received the 17 crore that Goswami claimed to have paid them, Subramaniam said: ‘‘I don’t know who paid whom how much. There are many issues. There are many small-scale units for whom payments are pending.’’

However, documents show that no individual order has gone to any unit and there are no bills pending with the Patna district administration which was procuring the material.