Dandi Project incomplete despite spending Rs 20.43 crore: CAG

Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL) has incurred "unfruitful" expenditure of Rs 20.43 crore on the Dandi project, since it was not completed in time, the CAG report said.
As per the Comptroller and Auditor General report placed before the state Assembly on Tuesday, the Gujarat government run project was divided into two separate projects. The first one is the Dandi Heritage Corridor Project and the second is the Dandi Destination Development Project.
In March 2008, the central government had sanctioned a corridor project covering 21 destinations from Ahmedabad to Dandi in South Gujarat, where Mahatma Gandhi broke the salt law of the colonial British empire, the CAG audit report on TCGL tabled said.

The CAG report stated that being the implementing agency, TCGL gave work orders in 2010 to build offices, souvenir shops, guest rooms, libraries, restaurants and museums at 15 destinations on the route.
In November 2011, these works were completed by the contractor at a cost of Rs 11.84 crore, the CAG report stated.
However, when CAG did a physical inspection, it was found these facilities to be "unfit" for use.
"We observed that even two years after being completed, these buildings were not furnished and neither water connection nor electricity supply were provided, making them unfit for use. Some of the buildings were already showing signs of deterioration with broken glass and soiled paint," the CAG report stated.

"If the project was properly completed and opened to the public, it could have been a major tourist attraction. The expenditure of Rs 11.84 crore also remained unfruitful," the CAG report stated.