Itanagar, A performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has found major deficiencies in planning, execution, and monitoring of tourism projects in Arunachal Pradesh, including wasteful expenditure, diversion of funds, and several non-functional assets.
The audit, covering the period from 2017-18 to 2021-22, pointed to serious lapses such as inadequate tourism policy framework, ad-hoc project implementation, and lack of proper monitoring mechanisms.
Despite the 2003 state tourism policy, the state government did not take any steps for development of high-potential tourism areas, the report said. As a result, the tourism department executed projects on an ad-hoc basis without conducting feasibility studies at the ground level.
The audit further found that in six projects, the project sites were shifted from the approved locations without obtaining approval from the Union Tourism ministry, the sanctioning authority.
The report also highlighted that 14 projects taken up under the Planning and Investment Division of the Department of Development were abandoned after incurring significant expenditure.
During joint physical inspections, the audit detected that payments amounting to ₹8.16 crore were made for components that were not executed despite being recorded as completed in the measurement books.
The audit body also found that 41 tourism assets created at a cost of ₹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 CAG recommended that the tourism department ensure recovery of short deductions of statutory dues from the firms concerned and impose appropriate penalties against the drawing and disbursing officer responsible.
