Bhopal, The Madhya Pradesh EOW has unearthed an alleged ₹10.99-crore procurement fraud involving fake bidding on the government e-marketplace to supply old computers as new and other substandard devices to a state department, officials said on Thursday.
A case has been registered against four persons from different firms in connection with alleged irregularities in procurement for the Social Justice and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Department, EOW Director General Upendra Jain told PTI.
A probe by the Economic Offences Wing has found that four firms were allegedly controlled or linked to the same person and participated in GeM tenders to create the impression that they were competitors in the bidding, he said.
The companies used the same mobile number registered under a common GST account, the same email ID and address. They participated together in tenders and submitted manufacturer authorisation letters to qualify for the bids, Jain said on the modus operandi of the fraud.
The firms supplied old computers as new ones in some procurements. In one case, computers installed on July 22, 2024 were allegedly shown as new equipment in a tender floated on September 23, 2024, the EOW said in a release.
The probe also found discrepancies in the specifications of the computers supplied. The firms allegedly supplied equipment fitted with locally sourced SSDs and RAM that did not conform to the prescribed specifications, it added.
{{/usCountry}}The probe also found discrepancies in the specifications of the computers supplied. The firms allegedly supplied equipment fitted with locally sourced SSDs and RAM that did not conform to the prescribed specifications, it added.
{{/usCountry}}One of the firms submitted a fake authorisation letter purportedly issued by a multinational computer manufacturing company to participate in the tender, Jain said.
It was also found that a UPS carrying a printed price of ₹6,086 was allegedly procured by the department for ₹11,247, despite the GeM price being ₹3,754, the EOW said.
A manufacturer also informed the agency that the UPS model mentioned in the procurement was not supplied under the tender, according to the probe.
The EOW has recommended action, including blacklisting of the firms allegedly involved in the irregularities.
The FIR was registered on September 1 against the accused under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the EOW added.
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