The Odisha Vigilance Department on Thursday unearthed assets worth over Rs 1 crore, including cash, deposits and immovable properties, during raids on an irrigation department engineer in Ganjam district, officials said.

Acting on allegations of possession of assets disproportionate to known sources of income, vigilance officials carried out simultaneous searches at five locations linked to Panchu Behera, an assistant engineer serving as a sub-divisional officer in the Bhanjanagar irrigation division.

During the searches, officials detected a three-storey residential building in Berhampur and five plots in and around the town. They also recovered cash amounting to Rs 18.90 lakh and unearthed deposits of around Rs 90 lakh in bank accounts and other financial institutions.

In addition, two heavy machinery vehicles were also found in Behera’s possession, raising further suspicion about the scale of alleged irregularities.

The raids were conducted following a tip-off, and officials said further investigation is underway to ascertain the full extent of the assets and possible violations under anti-corruption laws.