The Delhi government is finally ready with its reply to the Shunglu Committee report,following several departments working on it for weeks. A Cabinet meeting has been called on Wednesday to get the document cleared by Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. The Shunglu Committee report had raised several questions on the way the Delhi government executed projects for the Commonwealth Games. The Public Works Department was especially under the scanner. The report had pointed out that a majority of the contracts had been handed to a select few contractors,and that the rates of contracts were inflated to help them. The Shunglu Committee report had also pointed a finger at Dikshit,saying she had kept most of the financial powers during the Games. This led to delays in the decision-making process and consequently,overall losses. The Delhi government had issued an immediate response. Sheila Dikshit had,however,promised to provide a detailed reply to all charges put forward by the report. Former PWD Secretary K K Sharma has already sent a representation to the Home Ministry against his name being mentioned in the Shunglu Committee report. In his three-page representation, Sharma has said a majority of the decisions that the Shunglu Committee blames him for were actually taken before he joined the Delhi government in 2008. Sharma,however,remains the only officer to represent the body at the individual level.
