The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) in Kottayam has unearthed irregularities in the operation of a stone quarry and crusher unit in Nedumkunnam, near Changanassery.
According to officials, verification of documents at Royal Granites on Saturday showed that the unit was into unauthorised sale of quarry products by defrauding the State government. “While 2,728 truck loads of quarry products were transported from this unit in January, only 220 loads of these deliveries were carried out using the passes issued by the Geology department. This has caused the State exchequer a loss of around ₹58 lakhs in terms of royalty,’’ said an official.
Based on the finding, the department has now begun ascertaining the actual volume of business by the unit over the past six months. Further, explanations have been sought from the District Geologist and Assistant Geologist in this connection.
“That the Geology department failed to notice this huge discrepancy between the loads delivered and the number of passes issued looks very odd. This means either they were ignorant or had been operating hand in glove with the quarry unit,” added the official.
