The Karnataka Contractors Association has written a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah alleging that the commission rates in the Congress government have doubled and expressed serious concern over the pending dues and unresolved issues affecting the contractors across the state. The association said that the government owes Rs 33,000 crore. It is written in the letter, we have not received any benefit from your government. For the last two years, several rounds of meetings have been held to solve these problems and arrears. The association wrote that every time we were pacified and the authorities were instructed to solve the problems. Due to your honor and confidence of solving problems, our contractors kept patience by relying on your assurances. But so far we have not got any benefit from your government.
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The letter also states that commission rates in some departments have doubled compared to the previous government. The association made several allegations, including non -payment of pending bills by eight government departments who have done through contractors. Despite the meetings with the ministers and secretaries concerned, no results have come out. The letter accused the departments of ignoring seniority and transparency laws, creating their own separate formula and issuing only 15 to 20 percent of the pending outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding outstanding arrears. Despite repeated reminiscent of the Chief Secretary of the Finance Department in the last two years, the contractors have not even received the dues of Goods and Services Tax (GST) for 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21.
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The association further alleged that the Department of Mines and Geology has imposed unscientific fine on the vehicles of the contractors, in which the Royalty fine of the royalty amount is being charged for not depositing the mineral remittance permit (MDP), while the former Public Works Department Secretary had assured that the government would pay the difference. Additional complaints reveal the inappropriate practices prevailing in Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Limited (KRIDL) and other institutions, where allegedly allocated work to the followers of the elected representatives, who then demand funds from senior registered contractors, which makes it difficult to manage and maintain quality projects.