The Goa Government squandered a whopping Rs 5,50,10,537.60 (five crores fifty lakhs ten thousand five hundred thirty seven rupees and sixty paise) as a year’s rent for office premises at Patto Plaza rented from a Panaji based Computer dealer the flamboyant Nilesh Amonkar who is known to be closely associated to Manohar Parrikar. The entire premises though rented at a premium rate lay vacant and unused for over a year. This has been revealed in information obtained under the Right to Information Act from the General Administration department at the Secretariat.
The government from 1st November 2013 leased from Nilesh Amonkar 4841 sq mts at the building ‘Spaces’ and 613.25 sq mts at ‘Kamat Towers’ for a very steep monthly rent of Rs 42,92, 904.80. Incidentally the 4841 sq mts at ‘Spaces’ includes the 925 sq mts of the parking space in the basement for which the government is strangely also paying for. While in all private premises rented by the government the owner pays the municipal taxes, for Nilesh Amonkar the Government showered unheard of generosity by footing even that bill. This is how the stage managed devious drama unfolded. On the directions of then Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar the government on 27th February 2013 advertised calling for Expression of Interest from owners of Commercial premises for office space measuring 6000 to 7000 sq mts on Hire Purchase basis. Besides Nilesh Amonkar’s Apex Computer and Engineering Services the only other valid bid was by M/s Prudential Group Real Estate Developers owned by Nilesh Amonkar’s relative Gaurang Sinai Suctancar.It was specified that the area should be between 6000/7000 sq mts in one building or in two adjacent buildings. In his bid Nilesh Amonkar had offered 5434 sq mts in the building ‘Spaces’ which was still under construction and 613.25 sq mts at ‘Kamat Towers’. However factually ‘Kamat Towers’ was not adjacent to ‘Spaces’ as was required. The government committee which inspected the premises found that the actual floor space offered at ‘Spaces’ was only 3320.98 sq mts and not 5434 sq mts as wrongly stated by Nilesh Amonkar in his bid. In his bid Nilesh Amonkar had also stated that the ground floor of ‘Spaces’ was available and did not disclose to the government that it was being leased by him to another party. Surprisingly the government also deviated from the advertisement of hire purchase and took Nilesh Amonkar’s premises on a three year locked rental agreement extendable by another three years. Very strangely nowhere in the entire file notings has it come on record that the premises at ‘Spaces’ taken by the government at a very inflated rent was very next door to a ‘ticking health time bomb’ the garbage treatment plant at Patto. Curiously the required rent rate reasonability was also not sought from the Public Works Department (PWD). After the premises lay ideal for a year, the State Information Commission has only last month moved to ‘Kamat Towers’ on the 7th floor after the government spent another whopping 80 lakhs on furnishing the place. The government had earlier already allotted 400 sq mts at the Goa Institute of Management at Ribandar to house the Information Commission but Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar suddenly directed that it be moved to ‘Kamat Towers’ instead. The Panaji Civil Courts are scheduled to move to the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th floor of “Spaces” with the government spending over five crores on furnishing. The Courts are moving there as a stop gap arrangement till the Court premises at Merces comes up. Would it not have been prudent to continue with the courts where they are and instead expedite the construction of the Court premises at Merces to save all this unnecessary colossal and criminal waste of public funds? As per the file notings before renting these extremely exorbitantly priced premises from Nilesh Amonkar, there was no attempt to identify available vacant space elsewhere owned by the government. This whole stinking exercise in renting these office premises at Patto was a well stitched neatly planned plot to benefit Nilesh Amonkar and all this needs to be probed with the culprits brought to book. At a time when the real estate market in Goa is in the utter dumps with the going rate of office space at Patto Plaza being just around Rs 450 a sq mt if not less, why did a cash strapped government recklessly rent premises and even the parking area in the basement at Rs 650 a sq mt. And the government has further poured in crores on furnishing these premises which will all be for Nilesh Amonkar to keep. For the current period from 1st November 2014 to 31st October 2015 the financial burden by way of rent alone on these rented premises is now a whopping Rs 6,06,48,944.76. The real estate market may further sink but thanks to Manohar Parrikar his friend Nilesh Amonkar will safely float with an assured 3.5% increase in rent every year. Incidentally in 2005 during Manohar Parrikar’s first term as Chief Minister the 1405 sq mt plot at Patto Plaza where the building ‘Spaces’ is located was allotted through auction to Nilesh Amonkar on lease for perpetuity on payment of Rs 1,25,04,500 and paying a rent for Rs one for the first five years and then a annual rate of Rs 1,25,045. Nilesh Amonkar was also in the news earlier for having been high-handedly favoured by Manohar Parrikar in organizing those computer literacy courses besides supply of those computers and laptops under the cyber age scheme. We seem to be miles away from good governance with transparency and accountability in spending tax payer’s money nowhere in sight. In Manohar Parrikar’s kingdom many were called but few chosen. His longtime Karyakarta, the now departed Shekar Sawant was not as fortunate as Nilesh Amonkar. Aires Rodrigues Advocate High Court C/G-2, Shopping Complex Ribandar Retreat, Ribandar – Goa – 403006 Mobile No: 9822684372 Office Tel No: (0832) 2444012 Email: [email protected] Or [email protected] You can also reach me on Facebook.com/ AiresRodrigues Twitter@rodrigues_aires
