Badrinath: A cheque worth Rs 1.4 crore sent for the expansion of the helipad at Badrinath Dham has mysteriously gone missing, triggering concern within the concerned departments. The cheque was sent by the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA) to the Rural Works Department (RWD) office in Gopeshwar through registered post. However, it remains unclear which official or employee received the registry.
UCADA is carrying out the helipad expansion project at Badrinath Dham, while the construction work is being executed by the RWD. The total cost of the project is Rs 1.68 crore. UCADA had sent the first installment of Rs 1.4 crore through registered post from Dehradun.
The issue surfaced after RWD Executive Engineer Ala Diya requested UCADA officials to release funds for the construction work. UCADA officials informed him that the cheque had already been dispatched and departmental records showed it was received on April 6. Following this, RWD officials questioned employees and staff members in the office, but all denied receiving the registered post. Officials also compared signatures of staff members, but the signature recorded in postal department records did not match any employee or officer.
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Executive Engineer Ala Diya said the helipad expansion work at Badrinath started on April 20. Under the project, the helipad width is being increased from 30 metres to 45 metres to facilitate landing of MI-17 helicopters. He added that verification from HDFC Bank confirmed that the cheque amount has not been withdrawn so far. A letter has been sent to the bank requesting cancellation of the cheque, while UCADA has been asked to issue a fresh cheque.
