03-07-2025
Massive corruption alleged in housing project in Shiggaon
Haveri: Serious allegations of large-scale corruption have surfaced in the construction of government-approved houses under the Slum Board scheme in Shiggaon Assembly constituency. According to the complaint submitted by the local MLA, houses approved under the scheme are allegedly incomplete, built with substandard materials, and lacking basic amenities, pushing poor beneficiaries into financial distress. The issue came to light after local MLA raised the concern at a recent Karnataka Development programme (KDP) meeting chaired by District In-Charge Minister Shivananad Patil. The MLA highlighted that hundreds of families are left without promised facilities and that contractors have misappropriated funds meant for construction.
Following the complaint, Haveri Deputy Commissioner Vijayamahantesh formed a team headed by the Assistant Commissioner of Savanur to investigate. The team, comprising seven officers, visited the project sites in Savanur, Shiggaon and Bankapur towns and submitted a preliminary report to the district administration.
According to official records, the Slum Board had sanctioned around 2,000 houses for the Shiggaon constituency — 696 houses in Savanur town at a cost of Rs43 crore, 850 houses in Shiggaon at Rs46 crore, and 454 houses in Bankapur at Rs27.76 crore. The houses were approved under the 2021-22 project plan, with each beneficiary household sanctioned Rs7.2 lakh for construction. However, the probe revealed that while funds were released, only about 20% of houses are fully completed, with around 60% in an incomplete stage for over two years.
Beneficiaries claim that contractors supplied only about 50% of the required cement, bricks, and iron rods. Many families have been forced to spend their own money to buy remaining materials and complete the construction. Some have even mortgaged gold ornaments or sold small plots of land to raise money.
Adding to their woes, several labourers who worked on these houses have not been paid their wages, according to the report. Beneficiaries allege that despite multiple complaints, contractors have neither paid workers nor supplied the remaining construction material.
'I sold my wife's jewellery to buy bricks and cement to complete my house. But the contractor didn't even pay the workers. Many people like me are living in incomplete houses that leak during rain,' said Sandeep, a beneficiary who accused the contractors and some officials of misusing funds and cheating the poor. Responding to the controversy, Deputy Commissioner Vijayamahantesh said that of the sanctioned 2,000 houses, 200 were cancelled by the government. Out of the remaining 1,800 houses, 1,279 have been completed while about 521 are still in progress. He explained that during inspection, it was found that some beneficiaries themselves started constructing houses using their own funds when contractors failed to supply materials as per the agreement.
In some cases, the beneficiaries built bigger houses than the approved 350 square feet, which created disputes over additional costs. Payments worth Rs66 crore have been released so far out of the total project cost of Rs121 crore, and around Rs25 crore is pending.
The DC confirmed that the inspection team found only about half the promised materials were supplied and that the Slum Board has been notified about the pending payments and quality issues. He assured that the Assistant Commissioner's report has been sent to the Slum Board's head office in Bengaluru and further action will be decided soon.
However, angry beneficiaries say that the investigation must not stop at a report. 'The report will say all is fine. But the truth is, the work is incomplete and of poor quality. Some people are still living in rented houses because their Slum Board houses are half-built. There is no single photograph showing a house fully built and handed over with keys,' said Sandeep, adding that influential officers and contractors have colluded to siphon off funds.
