Centre Awaits UT Report On Chandigarh Smart City Funds

29 Jul 2026 CW Team

The matter concerns the balance funds remaining after the central flagship Smart Cities Mission formally ended on March 31, 2025 and the unspent sum was transferred to the municipal corporation. The remaining Rs 1.25 billion (bn) was moved to local accounts and it was during that transferring of funds that the alleged fraud came to light. The municipal corporation lodged a complaint and an FIR followed, alleging that fixed deposit receipts worth Rs 1.168 bn were false and had been issued by the manager of a bank.

Tewari has told officials that the issue cannot be treated as a routine administrative inquiry and has urged the Government of India to instruct the Reserve Bank of India to investigate the banking conduct surrounding the transaction. He has characterised the episode as a sensitive case involving alleged collusion, misappropriation and criminal breach of trust of public money and has sought immediate central action to preserve evidence and ensure accountability. The ministry’s communication indicates it will await the UT report before taking further steps.

Officials said the key focus will be on the sequence of approvals and the documentation that accompanied the transfer, including original fixed deposit records and bank endorsement. The development has highlighted concerns about oversight of transfers from central schemes to municipal bodies when programmes conclude and the need for rigorous audit trails. Any further action will depend on the depth of the UT response and on additional findings from the complaint-driven investigation.

Three months after Chandigarh Member of Parliament Manish Tewari raised an allegation in the Lok Sabha about misappropriation of funds from the city’s Smart Cities Mission, the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs has informed the MP that it is still awaiting a detailed report from the union territory administration. In a letter received earlier this month the minister of state Tokhan Sahu referred to Tewari’s zero-hour intervention on April two, 2026 and said the ministry has sought a detailed report which remains awaited. He indicated that a comprehensive reply will be furnished on receipt of the requisite information from the administration. The matter concerns the balance funds remaining after the central flagship Smart Cities Mission formally ended on March 31, 2025 and the unspent sum was transferred to the municipal corporation. The remaining Rs 1.25 billion (bn) was moved to local accounts and it was during that transferring of funds that the alleged fraud came to light. The municipal corporation lodged a complaint and an FIR followed, alleging that fixed deposit receipts worth Rs 1.168 bn were false and had been issued by the manager of a bank. Tewari has told officials that the issue cannot be treated as a routine administrative inquiry and has urged the Government of India to instruct the Reserve Bank of India to investigate the banking conduct surrounding the transaction. He has characterised the episode as a sensitive case involving alleged collusion, misappropriation and criminal breach of trust of public money and has sought immediate central action to preserve evidence and ensure accountability. The ministry’s communication indicates it will await the UT report before taking further steps. Officials said the key focus will be on the sequence of approvals and the documentation that accompanied the transfer, including original fixed deposit records and bank endorsement. The development has highlighted concerns about oversight of transfers from central schemes to municipal bodies when programmes conclude and the need for rigorous audit trails. Any further action will depend on the depth of the UT response and on additional findings from the complaint-driven investigation.

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