₹1.44 crore cash, 16 gold coins and more: Odisha Vigilance Dept's crackdown on forest official

The Odisha Vigilance Department on Friday, July 25, conducted raids at six locations associated with a forest official after uncovering assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. The raids recovered at least ₹1.44 crore in cash, according to a report by NDTV.

In the early morning raids at the six locations linked to deputy ranger Rama Chandra Nepak, four gold biscuits and 16 gold coins, each weighing 10 grams, were also discovered.

Several teams of senior officials were sent to conduct raids on locations connected to Nepak, who was employed at the Jaipur forest range. The probe is still underway, the report said, citing officials.

A large sum of cash was recovered from his flat in Jaipur. During the search, a currency-counting machine had to be brought to his house.

Raids were also ongoing at a flat he owned in the same building.

Searches were also carried out at his office, a house on his ancestral land in Jaipur, his in-laws' residence in Jaipur, and his brother's apartment in Bhubaneswar.

Second raid in a week

Last week, searches were initiated against Nityananda Nayak, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) in Keonjhar, Odisha. Officials found 115 land plots in his name, 200 grams of gold, a small armoury containing rifles, and other assets worth crores, the report said.

The raids were conducted at seven locations linked to Nayak. The officials recovered cash worth ₹1.55 lakh, one four-storeyed building in Angul, two four-wheelers and four two-wheelers, and a collection of teak artefacts. Reportedly, Nayak had the highest number of properties owned by any government official.

The raided locations included a four-storey house spanning up to 9,000 sq ft belonging to Nayak in Angul, his ancestral home in Madanmohan Patna, his in-laws’ residence in Jagannathpur, the official quarters of DFO and office in Keonjhar, and his son’s house and workplace in Komanda, Nayagarh, as Mint reported on July 21.