Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Vigilance has recovered a staggering Rs 4 crore unaccounted cash from the Bhubaneswar residence of Deputy Director of Mines for the Cuttack circle, Debabrata Mohanty, arrested the previous night while allegedly accepting a Rs 30,000 bribe from a coal vendor.
This is the highest-ever cash seizure in a trap case in the state, according to a Vigilance release.
Mohanty had demanded the illegal gratification for facilitating coal depot operations and granting transport permission. The entire tainted bribe amount was recovered from his possession and seized in the presence of witnesses,
Following the arrest, Vigilance teams conducted simultaneous raids at multiple locations, including his flat at Nature’s Crest Apartment at Shree Vihar in Patia; his parental home at Mathasahi in Bhadrak district; and his office chamber in Cuttack.
During the searches at his Patia flat, the agency found stacks of currency notes hidden in trolley bags and almirahs, totalling over Rs 4 crore. Counting of the cash is on to determine the exact amount, but officials described it as a record-breaking haul for Odisha Vigilance. Additional recoveries included Rs 1.20 lakh in cash from a drawer in Mohanty’s office chamber. Other assets detected so far include a palatial double-storey building over 2,400 square feet at Pahala in Bhubaneswar, and around 130 grams of gold.
Further investigation is underway to ascertain the source of the seized wealth and possible links to other irregularities.
Mohanty joined govt service on August 9, 2004 as Junior Mining Officer (senior surveyor) in the Mining Office, Balangir. He subsequently worked in the same rank at Baripada from 2006 to 2008, Berhampur from 2009 to 2011, Cuttack from 2011 to 2014, and at the state headquarters in Bhubaneswar from 2014 to 2018. He was promoted to the rank of Assistant Mining Officer (Chief Surveyor) in March 2018 and joined at Sambalpur. From April 2022 to December 2025, he served as Mining Officer at Phulbani, covering the areas of Phulbani, Boudh, and Nayagarh.
On January 7, 2026, he joined as Deputy Director of Mines, Cuttack Circle. His jurisdiction included Cuttack and Kendrapada districts.
