Stumped by the hefty maintenance bill for the Ram Manohar Lohia Park with little to show on the ground, the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) has ordered an inquiry against the engineers involved in the work and has withheld further payments till the completion of the inquiry.

LDA Vice-chairman Mukesh Kumar Meshram has ordered that the role of engineers in inflating the maintenance expenditure be looked into following which action could be taken against them.

According to a recent maintenance bill for Lohia Park submitted by the engineers, Rs 90 lakh were spent over the last few months of which Rs 62 lakh was for general maintenance work and the rest 28 lakh for paying electricity bill.

Sources at the LDA said the account section has been asked not to release the fund for the payment of bill until the inquiry was completed.

Lohia Park was developed on 82 acres of land in Gomti Nagar during the regime of Mulayam Singh Yadav. The park is popular picnic spot and morning walkers’ delight in the city.

Meshram said, “It has been seen that huge amount was being spent on maintenance of Lohia Park but results were not satisfactory. I visited the park a few days ago and found it in a very bad shape. So, this inquiry has been ordered.”

A four-member committee headed by Secretary Mani Prasad Mishra will conduct the inquiry. Meshram said other parks would also be inspected and inquiries would be ordered if irregularity was found in their maintenance bills.