Berhampur: Odisha Vigilance on Friday arrested an assistant engineer, who is currently posted as Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) of the DAHA Irrigation Sub-Division under the Bhanjanagar Irrigation Division in Ganjam district, for allegedly possessing assets far exceeding his known sources of income.
He is scheduled to be produced before the Special Judge, Vigilance, Berhampur, later in the day.
The arrest followed simultaneous raids conducted on March 26 at five locations linked to Behera across Ganjam district, including his triple-storeyed residential building (approximately 3,550 sq ft) at Basant Vihar in Berhampur, a government quarter in Bhanjanagar, his office chamber, an ancestral house in Polasara, and a relative’s residence in Bima Nagar, Berhampur. The searches were led by a team of three DSPs, seven Inspectors, and supporting staff under search warrants issued by the Special Judge, Vigilance, Berhampur.
During the raids, the Vigilance sleuths uncovered a range of assets that Behera could not satisfactorily account for. These include:
>> A triple-storey building in
Berhampur town.
>> Five valuable plots of land in and around Berhampur
>> Rs 18.90 lakh in cash (Rs 15.13 lakh from the Berhampur house and Rs 3.72 lakh from the Bhanjanagar quarter).
>> Bank deposits, insurances, and other financial assets worth around Rs 90 lakh.
>> Gold ornaments weighing approximately 568 grams
>> Heavy machinery: one Ajax Argo 4300 concrete mixer machine purchased in 2024 valued at Rs 57 lakh and one Hyundai Excavator (JCB) machine worth about Rs 37 lakh.
>> One four wheeler (Hyundai i-20) & 3 two-wheelers.
>> Household articles worth around Rs.8.57 lakh
Other items such as household articles and vehicles.
The unearthed immovable and movable assets are estimated to worth over 4 crore, which is strikingly disproportionate to the earnings during his 15-year-long service period. The 41-year old Behera entered govt service in September 27, 2011, with a consolidated remuneration of Rs 9,300 per month. He was deputed to Panchayat Raj and Drinking Water department and posted at Koksara block as an assistant engineer (civil) from October 15, 2011 to November 19, 2015. He was posted as SDO, Daha irrigation, Bhanjanagar, in April, 2022. Before he was posted in Bhanjanagar, he was also working in Dhamnagar in Kalahandi and Chakapad in Kandhamal.
While a case has been registered at Berhampur Vigilance police station under Prevention of Corruption Act, 2018, further investigation is underway to determine the full extent of the disproportionate assets.