Odisha vigilance unearths govt fund of ₹9.24 crore siphoned off by clerical staff
The huge funds were embezzled and transferred to 77 different bank accounts after processing of false bills pertaining to provisional gratuity, unutilized leave salary in the names of retired employees, and ingenuine claims
The Odisha Vigilance Directorate has uncovered a significant fraud scheme perpetrated by clerical staff at an engineer's office, resulting in the embezzlement of ₹9.24 crore. Between the financial years 2022-23 and 2025-26, Banalata Mohanty, a section officer, and Bibhudutta Nayak, a junior assistant, conspired with unknown associates to generate fake sanction orders and bills.
These fraudulent bills were used to siphon government funds, covering provisional gratuity, unutilized leave salary for retired employees, and false claims against the office contingency fund. The forged bills were processed through the Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS), with the accounts of relatives and associates of the accused receiving the misappropriated funds.
A total of 77 bank accounts belonging to 48 individuals were used to receive the stolen money. Of the recovered misappropriated amount, Rs.3.96 crores have been recovered by the administrative authority, with the rest still under investigation. Four persons, including Dipak Kumar Routray and Laxman Biswal, colleagues of the accused, as well as data entry operators Rajib Lochan Senapati and Soumya Ranjan Mohapatra, have been arrested for their involvement in the collusive scheme.
Written by urgent.news from The Hindu's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
