In a major anti-corruption operation, the Odisha Vigilance Department on Friday conducted raids at seven locations allegedly linked to Baikuntha Nath Sarangi, Chief Engineer of the Odisha Rural Works Division, from his Bhubaneswar flat and Angul residence. Officials recovered about Rs 1 crore from his flat in Bhubaneswar and around Rs 1.1 crore from his residence in Angul, for a total cash recovery of approximately 2.1 crore. Officials said that the counting process is still underway.
According to the Vigilance Department, Sarangi threw bundles of Rs 500 notes from the window of his Bhubaneswar flat upon noticing the presence of the search team. Vigilance officials later recovered the cash in the presence of witnesses. The search operations and further proceedings are ongoing.
In a separate incident, Odisha Vigilance intercepted Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE) Pabitra Mohan Panigrahi of Chitrakonda Block in Malkangiri district in April. It seized cash exceeding Rs 15 lakh, which was suspected to be ill-got. Acting on credible intelligence inputs about alleged bribe collection from contractors, a team of Odisha Vigilance officials intercepted Panigrahi near Gobindapally Chowk while he was travelling from his government residence in Chitrakonda to Bhubaneswar in a WagonR car bearing registration number OD-30-E-3096. He was reportedly taking a lift at the time.
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Upon interception, officials recovered Rs 5.07 lakh in cash from Panigrahi's possession. A further search at his government quarters in Chitrakonda led to the recovery of Rs 10 lakh more in cash. As Panigrahi failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for the seized amount, the Vigilance team confiscated the entire cash. Subsequently, searches are underway at two additional premises linked to Panigrahi from a disproportionate assets (DA) angle. He is currently being questioned about the source of the recovered funds. Further investigation is in progress, and a detailed report is awaited.