Three senior IAS officers spent an excess of Rs 6.72 lakh of taxpayer’s money during a trip to Paris in June 2015, an audit report by the Director General of Audit (Central), Chandigarh, revealed.
Vijay Kumar Dev, who served as the Advisor to the Administrator of Chandigarh at the time, Anurag Aggarwal, the then Home Secretary of Chandigarh, and Vikram Dev Dutt, the then Secretary (Personnel), have come under scrutiny for the misuse of taxpayer funds.
They allegedly extended their stay in Paris, upgraded their hotel accommodation, and approved each other’s trips, bypassing the rules and guidelines.
In 2015, the Chandigarh administration received an invitation from the Foundation Le Corbusier, located in Paris. The invitation was for a meeting, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, who had contributed to Chandigarh’s master plan.
The administration nominated four participants for this event. The Home Ministry demanded certificates for Vijay Dev, Vikram Dev Dutt, and Anurag Aggarwal. The travel program was arranged and approved.
However, the audit report found that the officers were approving each other’s trips. Vijay Dev approved Vikram Dutt’s trip, and Dutt approved Dev’s trip. Vijay Dev also approved Anurag Aggarwal’s trip.
The audit report has revealed that the initial budget for the trip was Rs 18 lakh, which escalated to over Rs 25 lakh, with business-class tickets costing approximately Rs 1.77 lakh each and hotel accommodations exceeding the original budget by a significant margin.
The audit report highlights that the visit was initially approved for one day but was later extended to seven days without proper approval, violating the norms that limit foreign travel visits to five days without obtaining prior approval.
The audit report found that the invitation was meant for Chandigarh’s Chief Architect. Instead, three Secretary-level officers attended, all at the expense of the taxpayer.
The report also revealed that the trip was not sponsored by the hosting foundation.
One of these officers has now retired while the other two have been transferred and hold different positions.
In response to the audit report’s findings, the Chandigarh Administration has taken measures to curb wasteful spending, including banning air travel to Delhi and mandating train travel and government accommodation for official trips.
