LUCKNOW, Aug. 13 -- Proposals for widening and strengthening of roads were sanctioned in Uttar Pradesh without ensuring availability of free land that resulted in delay in completion of work, stated the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) tabled in the UP Legislative Assembly on Tuesday. Sharing an example, the report cited Varanasi-Shaktinagar Marg amounting to Rs 121.59 crore that got sanctioned in May 2018 without ensuring availability of encumbrance free land. This resulted in a delay in completion of work by more than two years. Widening and strengthening of Manikpur to Dharkundi Ashram via Kalyanpur road in Chitrakoot was sanctioned in May 2018 for Rs 40.37 crore. Departmental officers did not ensure the availability of encumbrance free land before sending the proposal as forest clearance was not granted by the forest department, the report said. This resulted in reduction in width of road during execution by 1.54 metres in a stretch of four km against original technical sanction of 5.5 metres, the report stated. The Rule 6 (2) of the Central Road Fund (CRF) Rules 2014 inter alia provides that the proposals shall include only those works where land is available without any encumbrance. The audit, however, noticed violation of the rule in following cases, the report stated. There was no comprehensive planning in the state for upgradation of roads under CRF, however, an annual plan was prepared from 2022-23. No periodical traffic survey was conducted to identify upgradation requirements, the CAG report further said. "The proposals under CRF were sanctioned by the state in an ad hoc manner without proper identification and prioritisation of roads based on requirement. The department utilised only 35 percent of the allotted budget for execution of works sanctioned under CRF during 2016-17 to 2022-23. There was a difference in the expenditure recorded in the books of accounts," the report stated. "The proposals received from public representatives were consolidated and proposed by the department for consideration under CRF instead of selecting the works based on prioritisation," the report added. No periodical traffic survey was conducted by the divisional officers, due to which identification and prioritisation of roads for upgradation could not be carried out properly, the CAG stated. Thus, the department did not have a complete and updated database of roads to facilitate systematic and objective planning for upgradation of works to be undertaken, it said. Hence, the entire process of submission of proposals by divisional officers was performed in absence of proper planning procedure, the report said....