Congress attacks LDF govt in Kerala on PricewaterhouseCoopers consultancy

Launching a tirade against the LDF government in Kerala on the decision to award the consultancy of e-mobility project to audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the Congress on Sunday alleged that it was in violation of norms and should be revoked.

Launching a tirade against the LDF government in Kerala on the decision to award the consultancy of e-mobility project to audit firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the Congress on Sunday alleged that it was in violation of norms and should be revoked. No tenders had been issued by the government before hiring the London headquarteredcompany for preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the project, Leader of Opposition in the assembly Ramesh Chennithala told reporters here.

This was a gross violation of existing norms and therefore 'illegal', he said. According to a government order, the decision to award the consultancy to the company was takenat a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on August 17.

"It needs to be noted that the controversial decision was taken by the chief minister directly without discussing the matter with the state cabinet or with departmentslike Finance", he said. As per the order of TransportSecretary K R Jyothilal, the DPR was to formulate a road map for the electric vehicle manufacturing in Kerala.

The government's Electric Vehicle policy envisages one million vehicles on the road by 2022. By 2020, 2 lakh two wheelers, 50,000 three wheelers, 1,000 goods carriers and 3,000 buses would be on the roads.

"What has motivated a Communist Chief Ministerto have a firm confidence in a multinational company against which several serious allegationshave been raised inIndia in the past?" he asked. The PwC has also been awardedother important projects like Kochi-Palakkad industrial corridor and Kerala Fibre Optic Network projects. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) had held investigations into the charges against PwC and had banned it from operating in India for two years in2018, the Congress leader alleged.

The government has earned itself a name in indulging in 'rampant corruption'through innovative methods in a very structured and organised way. "The government has proven its skill in manipulationand corruption in various issues like the Kseb Trans Grid Project, Springlerdeal, Bev Q appand sand mining from Pamba," he alleged.

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