In a startling disclosure, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) today said it has found 22,853 "ghost employees" on its payrolls, an administrative lapse that has been costing the civic body a whopping Rs 17 crore every month. An inquiry by Municipal Commissioner K S Mehra, the report of which was submitted to Delhi Mayor Kanwar Sain, has revealed the extent of irregularity that both ruling BJP and<br/>opposition Congress in MCD said has been going on "for years". <br/> <br/>Mr Sain said the MCD will "go into the full depth of the matter" by conducting a vigilance inquiry and "take strict<br/>disciplinary action against defaulting officials."<br/><br/>The probe was ordered after the biometric system of attendance, introduced by the civic body in August 2008 and<br/>later extended to all MCD zones, brought out a gap in the data given by drawing and disbursing officers and the number<br/>of employees enrolled for biometric attendance.