Guwahati, June 28: The Assam Information Commission has directed the state health and family welfare department to explain why payment to a contractor in Tinsukia district has been delayed by more than 15 years.
In 2001, the PWD engaged Anil Kumar Barua to build a community health centre at Panitola, nearly 6km from Tinsukia.
The project, however, ran into rough weather with the health department, under which such public facilities operate, not issuing its approval for the centre.
Baruah's plea before the commission stated that he had fallen victim to a war of one-upmanship between the PWD and the health department.
"The health department had requested the PWD (building) to help put in place a health centre at Panitola, but had done so on an ad hoc basis, telling the PWD that while it did not have funds for the health centre, the money for it would be arranged from the Prime Minister's Gramodaya Yojana," the statement said.
The statement goes on to state that the health department then went back on its word on the Rs 30-lakh project and refused to pay Baruah who had completed 40 per cent of the work.
This led Baruah to stop work on the project though 40 per cent of it had been done. He then filed a petition at Gauhati High Court in September 2008 seeking its intervention in having his money released.
"Even this did not work," said Baruah's statement before the commission, with the department still refusing payment on the pretext that the project had not been sanctioned by the health department.
Speaking to The Telegraph, a senior official of the health department confirmed that the department received such a notice. "We will comply with the commission's directions," he said, without giving details.