Odisha Vigilance Arrests Five Forest Officials for ₹80 Lakh Embezzlement in Kalahandi

Bhubaneswar, May 14 : In a major crackdown on corruption, Odisha Vigilance on Tuesday arrested five officials of the Forest Department for allegedly embezzling nearly ₹80 lakh under the Compensatory Afforestation Scheme in the Kalahandi South Forest Division during the 2023–24 financial year.

Acting on credible inputs of large-scale fund misappropriation, Odisha Vigilance launched an enquiry into the plantation activities under the scheme in Jaipatna Range. Four teams comprising 25 vigilance officers conducted a detailed verification and enumeration at several plantation sites.

The investigation revealed glaring irregularities in plantation work across five sites, with significant shortfalls in actual work done. Further inquiries showed that large amounts of government funds were diverted into fictitious labour accounts and promptly withdrawn.

Based on prima facie evidence, five officials posted in the Jaipatna Range were found complicit in the fraudulent activities:

• Sairendri Bag, Deputy Ranger and In-Charge
• Umesh Rout and Debraj Sunani, Foresters
• Ashok Kumar Sahu and Lalit Naik, Forest Guards

They were collectively accused of misappropriating ₹79,54,635 by falsifying official records and failing to execute the plantation work as mandated.

The Koraput Vigilance division registered a case against the accused on May 12 under relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018), along with multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Sections 316(5), 318(4), 336(3), 340(2), and 61(2).

All five officials were arrested and produced before the Court of the Special Judge, Vigilance, Bhawanipatna. The investigation is currently underway and further action is expected in due course.

The incident has raised serious concerns over transparency in the implementation of environmental schemes and the role of internal oversight within the Forest Department.