Guwahati: A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on the development of tourism infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh has revealed major shortcomings in the planning, execution and monitoring of tourism projects in the state.
The audit, which covered the period from 2017–18 to 2021–22, was presented in the State Legislative Assembly on March 10 by Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein. The report flagged instances of wasteful expenditure, diversion of funds, award of work to ineligible contractors and the creation of several non-functional tourism assets.
The CAG also pointed to serious systemic lapses, including the absence of a comprehensive tourism policy framework, ad-hoc project implementation and inadequate monitoring mechanisms. Although the state had adopted a tourism policy in 2003 that emphasised the preparation of a comprehensive master plan, the report said no concrete steps were taken to identify and develop high-potential tourism areas.
As a result, the Tourism Department implemented projects on an ad-hoc basis without conducting feasibility studies at the ground level.
The audit also found that in six projects the locations were changed from the approved sites without obtaining permission from the Union Ministry of Tourism, which had sanctioned the projects.
In another case, the Director of Tourism withdrew Rs 6.17 crore from government accounts between February 2019 and March 2022 and parked the funds in demand drafts for periods ranging from six months to nearly five years. The report noted that the withdrawal was made without immediate requirement in order to avoid the lapse of budgetary grants, in violation of Rule 100(2) of the Central Government Account (Receipt and Payment) Rules, 1983.
The audit further revealed that 14 projects undertaken under the Planning and Investment Division of the Department of Development (PIDDC) were abandoned after incurring significant expenditure. Three projects were discontinued after spending between 63% and 94% of the agreement value, while the remaining 11 were abandoned after spending between 10% and 43.86%.
Since these incomplete projects were neither taken up under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme nor completed by the State government, the expenditure of Rs 14.01 crore incurred on them was rendered wasteful, the report said.
During joint physical inspections, the audit team also found that payments amounting to Rs 8.16 crore had been made for components that were not executed, even though they were recorded as completed in the measurement books. The report observed that such payments were irregular and could also indicate possible fraud, warranting detailed investigation.
The CAG further noted that 41 tourism assets created at a cost of Rs 87.92 crore during the review period remained non-functional and idle for periods ranging from seven months to as long as 109 months as of March 31, 2023.
The audit recommended that the Tourism Department recover short deductions of statutory dues from the firms concerned and impose appropriate penalties on the drawing and disbursing officer responsible.
It also advised the department to take steps to revive and complete the abandoned projects and ensure that the tourism assets created with public funds are put to use after completion.