Imphal, May 26 2009: Someone has fraudulently withdrawn a whopping sum of Rs 2,00,00,000 from the account of the Technical Promotion Cell (TP Cell) which has been frozen following a decision taken at a meeting of the state cabinet held on April 30 last.

Reliable sources said that there is a great possibility of involvement of an IAS officer working under the Government of Manipur in the fraudulent withdrawal of the amount.

A Committee of Officers headed by Chief Secretary, Rakesh has started investigating the scandal.

Once the Committee completes the investigation, action will be taken to give appropriate punishment to the guilty persons.

It may be recalled here that after the state cabinet took the decision to do away with the TP Cell on April 30 last, Principal Secretary, Finance, A N Jha issued an order freezing all accounts under the TP Cell.

The order said that all bills pertaining to contract works done under the Cell will be examined by a committee under the government and the money would be paid within a month.

However, the sources said, as soon as the officials, who were working in the TP Cell heard the news of dissolving the Cell by a decision of the state cabinet, withdrew every single rupee which was in the accounts of the TP Cell through various bank accounts.

The sources further said that the Registrar of the Cooperative Department was the DDO of the TP Cell.

The DDO of TP Cell, T Panmei, IAS, who is also the Reigistrar of the Cooperative Department was present at the cabinet meeting of April 30 .

The sources revealed that the government is contemplating taking actions against the IAS officer on the charge that he fraudulently withdrew Rs 2 crore just in one day despite knowing fully well that the government has frozen all accounts under the TP Cell.

The sources further said that since the cabinet meeting was held on the night of April 30, the Finance Department could not implement the decision immediately.

The following day, May 1 was also a holiday.

Therefore, the process for freezing the accounts of TP Cell was done only on May 2 .

When a high ranking officer of the Finance Department, Government of Manipur went to the banks concerned to deliver the copies of order on freezing the accounts belonging to the TP Cell in the afternoon of May 2, the bank officials had told him that all the money which was in the accounts of TP Cell had already been withdrawn earlier in the day and that not a single rupee was left in the balance.

Thus the clandestine withdrawal of the huge amount came to notice of the Finance Department.

Another astonishing fact is that the TP Cell which was made to function like an Engineering Cell by depositing crores of rupees by different departments of the state government had turned out to be a cell not set up according to legal provisions.

The Cell was not under the Government of Manipur as well as not a statutory body.

Moreover, it was not a society registered under the Registrar of Cooperative Societies.

However, several IAS officers and many Ministers used to involve in the functioning of the Cell making it look like as though legally established.

Besides the TP Cell was divided into four branches and made to function in the hills and the valley by appointing a number of employees by the Ministers and IAS officers concerned.

They were found to be involved in transferring the engineers of the Cell.

Thus the TP Cell is also at present involved in construction of infrastructure for many government departments such as Department of Education, Department of Information and Public Relations, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Commerce & Industries, etc.

by having them deposit crores of rupees with the account of the Cell.

But now that since there is not a single rupee left in the balance of the accounts of the Cell, questions arise how will the works started by the TP Cell be completed.

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