Bhubaneswar, March 25: The state government failed to levy electricity duty worth Rs 128.06 crore, including interest on Vedanta Aluminium Limited, according to the latest report of Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on revenue sector for the year ending March 2012.
The CAG observation is bound to raise eyebrows as Vedanta has been in the news for the past sometime for a variety of reasons. The company’s one-million tonne alumina refinery at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district is facing an acute raw material shortfall, while its hopes of getting alternative bauxite mines from the government are yet to materialise.
The CAG report was placed in the Assembly today.
Vedanta received a jolt when the Union environment ministry had rejected the state government’s proposal for bauxite mining in the Niyamgiri hills close to the refinery.
Had that materialised, Vedanta would not have faced a raw material shortfall. But, it was rejected following recommendations of a Centre-appointed committee.
This, however, was not the only eye-popping observation in the report that also pointed out that revenue worth Rs 246.16 crore could not be earned for want of provision of transport fee on Indian-made foreign liquor and beer.
The renewal of excise shops without enhancement of consideration money also resulted in a revenue loss of Rs 85.08 crore.
The CAG also found that bottling fees of Rs 5.59 crore was not realised from a brewery while state excise duty worth Rs 68.88 lakh, including the fine, was not realised from 20 licensees. In the area of forest government, revenue worth Rs 2.08 crore was blocked because of non-disposal of sandalwood seized in connection with various offences.
The CAG report on economic sector pointed out that even five years after the recommendation of the National Forest Commission, the state is yet to frame a forest policy.
It observed that of 19 sanctuaries and two proposed national parks, one sanctuary and one national park were notified. These were the Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary and the Bhitarkanika National Park.
