The Crime Investigation Department (CID) has started investigation into an alleged multi-crore financial scam involving funds of AP State Skill Development Corporation by Siemens Industry Software India Ltd and Design Tech Systems Pvt Ltd.
Cases have been registered against the then Special Secretary, Skill Development, Ghanta Subba Rao; The then Director of APPSSDC K. Lakshmi Narayan; OSD and Special Officer to Secretary, Skill Development, Nimmagadda Venkata Krishna, and Director of Design Tech Systems Pvt Ltd and several others cited irregularities in the implementation of the provisions of the MoU between APSSDC and Siemens under various sections of the IPC.
The CID searched the offices and residences of the accused in Hyderabad and other states.
The MoU includes provisions for setting up of six Centers of Excellence and 36 Technical Skill Development Institutes at an estimated cost of Rs 3,356 crore, of which the technology partner will bear 90% of the project cost as grant and the state government. Had to invest only 10%.
The GO was issued with the cost estimation and sharing of 90% and 10% of the cost between the technology partners and the state government respectively. However, after the order was issued, a tripartite agreement was drawn up in such a way that only it was mentioned that the Andhra Pradesh government would release ₹371 crore as grant for SISW and Design Tech for setting up skill development institutes. Will do
An amount of ` 371 crore was released to DesignTech’s account even before the skill development institutes were set up or appraisal of the work done. Thereafter, with the alleged collusion of the Andhra Pradesh government and APSSDC officials, the officials of SISW and Design Tech allegedly siphoned off a major chunk of the amount without providing the goods and services.
An investigation conducted by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Pune in 2017-18 had allegedly established that at least ₹241 crore of funds of ₹371 crore given by the Andhra Pradesh government was allegedly misappropriated. . The investigation further stated that this was done through the use of fake invoices provided by the affiliated shell companies, which were used for layered transmission of funds, without actually providing any hardware, software, courseware, other goods/services etc. was done for.
The money was allegedly withdrawn from bank accounts and handed over to unidentified persons through hawala transactions.
The CID probe will examine whether the APSSDC officials violated norms in clearing work orders worth ₹371 crore given on nomination basis in violation of General Financial Rules, guidelines of Central Vigilance Commission etc. There was no real business operation to extort money to create fake invoices of counterfeit companies using a fraudulent method.
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