Thiruvananthapuram | TDB president K Jayakumar on Tuesday said the "inconsistencies" in the Global Ayyappa Sangam audit report were due to the board's failure to respond to the auditor's queries and would be rectified on a priority basis.
He added that while the Indian Institute of Infrastructure and Construction (IIIC) claimed to have spent Rs 7.04 crore to organise the event, the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), under its former president, P S Prasanth, had decided to pay only Rs 4.99 crore.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the previous board with IIIC had fixed the maximum cost at Rs 8.22 crore and later stipulated that the expenditure should not exceed Rs 4.99 crore, Jayakumar told reporters here.
"We do not intend to interfere with the earlier board's decision or change the amount it had fixed," he said.
He added that the board's decision had been communicated to IIIC, but the organiser had not yet accepted it.
"They (IIIC) may be disappointed, but they have no option other than to accept it," the TDB president said.
Asked why IIIC was awarded the work, he said the institute had experience managing events for the government and the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), which was likely why the previous board engaged it for the sangam.
Jayakumar also said that the expected sponsorship from various sources was not fully received.
He said that once Rs 1 crore is received from the Adani Group, the total sponsorship amount would reach Rs 3.85 crore.
He clarified that the remaining amount of around Rs 1.15 crore payable to IIIC would not be drawn from the board's funds.
Referring to the issues and inconsistencies flagged in the audit report by the Kerala High Court, Jayakumar said they would be rectified.
He stated that the audit report was not yet final and had been submitted to the court as it was overdue.
He claimed it was not a proper audit, as the auditor's queries were not responded to on time by the board, resulting in various issues and inconsistencies in the report.
"It needs to be rectified. By rectification, we mean physical verification of the bills, reconciliation of the amounts and validation of assets in the board's stock register," Jayakumar said.
"Either these steps were not carried out earlier, or, if they were, the auditor was not informed. That is why adverse findings appeared in the report. Once we submit a detailed reply, the issues will be resolved, and the findings will be cleared," he added.
For this purpose, the board, at its meeting held in the morning, constituted a three-member task force to undertake the rectification work so that a revised audit report and statement of accounts can be submitted before the court ahead of the next hearing on February 27.
On February 11, the High Court noted several issues and "serious inconsistencies" in the audit report of the Global Ayyappa Sangam held last year and directed the TDB to explain the reasons.
The court observed that explanations and clarifications were required not only from the Travancore Devaswom Board but also from the Kerala State Audit Department.
The audit report was submitted to the court as directed while dismissing petitions challenging the Global Ayyappa Sangam.
