BDO Suspended For COVID Fund Misappropriation In Odisha’s Nabarangpur

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has suspended a woman block development officer (BDO) in Nabarangpur district for her alleged involvement in embezzlement of funds on Thursday.

According to sources, the government had sanctioned around Rs 42 lakh towards medical and food expenses of migrant workers who returned from different places of the country to Odisha during COVID pandemic in 2020. The fund was meant to be spent for rehabilitation of the daily labourers in 26 panchayats under Kosagumuda block in the district.

Following the allegation that Akhyamita Kartik, who was the BDO of Kosagumuda at the time, had misappropriated the funds for helpless workers, additional project director, District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) had directed the district collector to investigate into the matter.

After the collector submitted his probe report, the project director, DRDA sent it to the state government which suspended the BDO on Thursday. She has been asked to report to the project director, DRDA during her suspension period.