Panel smells scam at BIA

Panel smells scam at BIA

Team says officials non-cooperative, seeks more time for report

Rohith BR. Bangalore



The Bengaluru International Airport (BIA) has come under the scanner again for its inadequate facilities.
The Joint House Committee, which was constituted to look into the allegations against BIA, said there was something fishy about the services being offered at the airport. Committee chairman and MLA Hemachandra Sagar sought three to six months more time from the government to submit the report.
The report was scheduled to be submitted on Monday. Congress party working president DK Shivakumar, who is a member of the Committee, said, "It is just a functional airport. There are no facilities here to meet international standards," he said. He alleged that the cost of the project had doubled compared to the initial figure of Rs1,300 crore. There seemed to be a scam behind this, he said.
Members of the committee said there appeared to be irregularities in the purchase of land for the project.
"Officials of the BIA are not co-operating with us when we call them for meetings. Even other companies in the Siemens-led private consortium associated with the project are not attending the meetings," a member said.
Shiva Kumar said the committee wanted to get an auditing done on the airport's constitution, functioning and business. The committee also planned to visit other airports in the country to get a clear picture on the drawbacks of BIA.
N Yogish Bhat, HD Revanna, Qamar-ul Islam, Nadagouda, Manohar Maski and Abdul Azim are other members of the committee.
"They have not given space to promote state tourism at this airport where lots of foreigners pass through," a member said.
Officials of BIA said they needed time to comment on the panel's remarks.
It is understood that the committee would take more time to submit its report as its members would be busy with the Lok Sabha elections scheduled for the next two months. Till then, airport users have to be content with the existing facilities.