National award under scanner as Khandwa scam unravels:Probe team finds fake ponds, partial work, villagers threatened for exposing water conservation fraud

In Khandwa, after the fraud in the water conservation campaign was exposed, the sarpanch ran after villagers to beat them and threatened to kill them. In fact, the district administration had received the country’s first national award and ₹2 crore from the President for the water conservation campaign on the basis of fake documents. Now, the actual work carried out under the campaign is being exposed. Following the revelation by Bhaskar, a high-level investigation team from Bhopal reached Harvanshpura Panchayat of Punasa Janpad on Wednesday. The team found a major scam in the construction of ponds. Less than 20% of the work had been completed, but nearly 70% of the funds had already been withdrawn. When villagers tried to present the truth to the investigation team, the sarpanch and his family members threatened them and attempted to assault them. Ran to beat villagers for telling the truth Villagers said that when the investigation team reached the fields of farmers Rajendra, Champalal, Ramlal, Ramprasad, Bhim Singh, and Prabhai to inspect the ponds, Sarpanch Deepak Ghate and his family members became enraged. They threatened the villagers who spoke the truth and became aggressive, ready to assault them. The villagers said they would lodge a complaint with the police. Open loot in Harvanshpura, work incomplete, full payment withdrawn A team led by senior IAS officer Dinesh Kumar Jain and ENC Mirdha of the MNREGA Council reached Harvanshpura at 9 am. The team inspected ponds in six fields. The total sanctioned cost was ₹5.30 lakh. However, even 20% of the work was not found completed on the ground, while ₹3.75 lakh had already been withdrawn from the government treasury. Villager Santosh Dangore stated that the investigation team was being guided by district officials and engineers according to their convenience. He alleged that there are 8–10 ponds in the village that exist only on paper and not on the ground, but the team did not inspect them. Dugwells were also not examined. However, the team assured that no aspect would be overlooked in the investigation. On the first day, ‘mud ponds’ found in Harsud Earlier on Tuesday, the team conducted a ‘reality check’ in villages of Harsud Janpad, where the situation was found to be even worse. Dotkheda: A pond existed on paper, but on the ground, only a pile of soil was created in the field to make it appear like a pond. Palani Mal: The administration had instructed the digging of a 6×6-foot pit, but only 1-foot-deep pits were found near government buildings. Anganwadi: A rooftop rainwater harvesting system was installed, but the pipe carrying water from the roof to the ground was missing. Shahpura Mal: As soon as the team’s arrival was sensed, the Panchayat Secretary hurriedly called a JCB and got a 1-foot-deep pit dug to cover up the matter. What is the whole matter? On November 11, the central government announced the National Water Award (first place) and ₹2 crore for water conservation to Khandwa district. Collector Rishabh Gupta and District Panchayat CEO Nagarjun B. Gowda received the award from President Droupadi Murmu. However, when Bhaskar investigated, it was found that the administration had shown 1.29 lakh works on the portal, most of which were fake. In many places, AI-generated photographs were uploaded, while in others, dry fields were falsely shown as ponds. Following these revelations, a team from Bhopal has now begun an investigation.