 "Trouble for Patnaik: CAG says Odisha gave 'undue' benefits to Posco")
Bhubaneswar: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has found Odisha Government of extending undue benefits to South Korean steel major Posco in allotment of a piece of land in the state capital here.
“The company extended undue benefit in allotment of land disregarding zonal regulation and charging of premium at a reduced rate,” the CAG in its latest report tabled in the Assembly yesterday said.
The CAG observation was made based on the performance audit on the land allotments by the state government’s General Administration department headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The auditor has come across widespread irregularities in land allotments.
[caption id=“attachment_689309” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Protests against the Posco plant in Odisha. Reuters[/caption]
The CAG report said that the country arm of South Korean Steel major POSCO-India had applied for allotment of a plot measuring 12,000 square feet for its Chairman-cum-Managing Director’s (CMD) residence-cum-guest house in 2006.
However, later it enhanced the requirement twice to 25,000 sq.ft in April 2007 and later 2 acres for the same purpose.
“Though the same area was earmarked in the Comprehensive Development Plan of the Bhubaneswar Capital city
for commercial use, the company was allotted 1.700 acres land in January 2008 at a premium of Rs 25 lakh per acre against prevalent market value of the land of Rs 64 lakh per acre resulting in a loss of Rs 66 lakhs to the state government,” the CAG has observed.
The CAG report also observed that the land was lying vacant till June 2012.
“The company, thus, was extended undue benefit in allotment of land disregarding zonal regulation and charging of premium at a reduced rate,” the CAG said in its report.
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