Fake Kumbh tenders stump tourism department

LUCKNOW: Bids for tenders worth nearly Rs 1,000 crore on social media for Kumbh-related works suddenly flooded UP Tourism office since the start of this month. Up for grabs were a Rs 600-crore contract to build a tent city in Allahabad and Rs 156-crore contract for supplying 2.5 lakh brown woollen blankets, 16 lakh units of white bed sheets and 25 lakh towels and also for making short films and documentaries on the mela.Only that UP Tourism officials themselves were stunned as all these tenders were fake.
Alarmed by fake tenders, UP tourism DG Awanish Awasthi immediately informed the police and the first FIR was lodged with Gomtinagar police station on July 7 against unknown persons for floating a tender for documentaries. Late on Friday, evening UPT officials were in process to lodge another FIR for other fake tenders. Soon after these fake tenders dame to light, tourism department posted a public notice on its website warning potential bidders to be wary of such fake tenders.
On Friday, a team from Gomtinagar police station visited the tourism department office and spoke to senior officials to understand the process for the purposes of investigation. Stating that the matter had put the department in an embarrassing position besides putting its reputation at stake, officials shared that the tenders were issued in the name of UP Tourism Development Corporation Limited with all details in the usual government tender format. However, these tenders had not been floated by the UP Tourism department which follows the e-tendering way.
"All the advertisements by us are posted on our website. Some tenders are published in dailies and magazines but never on social media," said a senior officer in the administration department.