Bhubaneswar. The government officials of the country keep setting new records of corruption every day. Who can forget Yadav Singh, the billionaire chief engineer of Noida Authority. He was found to have so much property that even those who kept his records were stunned. Now, one such high-ranking millionaire engineer has been found in Odisha. The investigation of the vigilance department has revealed that the engineer has not one or two but 85 plots. The black empire of the accused engineer was found to be spread from Odisha to West Bengal. The vigilance team is currently engaged in investigating the bank accounts and other financial records of the high-ranking engineer who is embroiled in the disproportionate assets case.
Odisha’s vigilance team on Friday unearthed assets worth crores of rupees of a high-ranking engineer. This includes 85 plots, a gold biscuit and other valuables. The engineer has been identified as Pravas Kumar Pradhan. He is posted in Anandpur Barrage Division. This is the third case related to high-profile officers, in which a senior officer has been found to have property on a large scale. Last week, the anti-corruption wing had unearthed 52 plots owned by an officer of the Excise Department and 34 plots owned by another senior engineer and his family.
What did you get?
The Vigilance Department said that its officers have unearthed a market complex, a five-storey building and 85 plots. One of these properties is also in West Bengal. Along with this, 218 grams of gold, a gold biscuit and Rs 11 lakh in cash have also been found. According to the information, Rs 11.7 lakh has also been found in the possession of Pravas Kumar Pradhan, Chief Construction Engineer of Anandpur Barrage Division in Salapada, Keonjhar. The statement said, ‘The plots were purchased by Pradhan in different years in his name as well as in the name of his family members. Their total value is more than Rs 2 crore. However, the actual value is likely to be higher. At present it is being confirmed.’
Financial records being scrutinized
Officials said bank accounts, postal, insurance and other deposit accounts are also being traced and searches are ongoing. Earlier this week, Excise Department Joint CP Ramchandra Mishra was arrested for amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. He was found in possession of 52 plots besides six multi-storey buildings and two apartments. In another incident, the Vigilance Department had traced 34 land plots, including one in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh and a farmhouse spread over eight acres, in possession of Sunil Kumar Raut, Chief Construction Engineer of Lower Suktel Project in Bolangir.
Tags: Anti corruption branch, National News, Vigilance Raid
FIRST PUBLISHED : August 2, 2024, 20:56 IST
