The State government in Hyderabad has ordered a probe into alleged corruption in sheep and fishling distribution schemes in the BRS government. Former Animal Husbandry minister T Srinivas Yadav and his aides are facing charges after important files went missing from the department’s head office.
The government is already investigating corruption in the Kaleshwaram project, ORR toll gate scam, and Formula E race. The ACB will take over the investigation based on a Vigilance preliminary report. They will look into beneficiary selection, sheep purchase, distribution, and all other aspects of the schemes from their launch.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy instructed officials to conduct a thorough investigation into scheme implementation. He mentioned irregularities in the sheep distribution scheme and referenced a CAG report pointing out corruption at a recent review meeting. Reddy brought up an ACB investigation where funds meant for sheep distribution were redirected to personal accounts by employees using fake names.
Reddy also asked about details collected by the department and questioned why the National Cooperative Development Corporation stopped providing loans for second installments. The corporation had initially given a loan of Rs 3,955 crore for the sheep distribution scheme.
Officials informed Reddy that the CAG had raised objections and found irregularities in the scheme, leading to the NCDC withholding the loan for various reasons. The CM decided to strengthen the Animal Husbandry wing and ensure dairy farmers receive their incentives on time. Payments of Rs 4 per liter of milk will be released monthly through a green channel starting from April.
Reddy suggested giving weightage to long-serving department employees in the recruitment of veterinary assistant surgeon posts filled by the TSPSC.
