A 52-year-old engineer with the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), who entered government service nearly 27 years ago at a monthly salary of just Rs 6,000, has come under the scanner of the Odisha Vigilance for allegedly amassing assets worth crores of rupees, apparently disproportionate to his known sources of income.
Simultaneous raids were conducted on Saturday at multiple locations linked to Baikuntha Nath Behera, Assistant Executive Engineer, ITDA, Baliguda in Kandhamal district, following search warrants issued by the Special Judge, Vigilance, Bhubaneswar.
Preliminary investigations by the anti-corruption agency revealed a vast portfolio of movable and immovable assets allegedly accumulated by Behera and his family members over the years. Vigilance officials said the assets detected so far appear to be far beyond his known sources of income.
Behera joined government service in 1999 as a Junior Engineer (Civil) at Nabarangpur Block with an initial salary of Rs 6,000 per month. He was later promoted and served in various tribal-dominated regions across the state.
During the searches, Vigilance unearthed five residential buildings, including a sprawling four-storeyed structure measuring around 10,500 sq ft at Niladri Vihar in Bhubaneswar. Other properties include a triple-storeyed house at Sailashree Vihar and three double-storeyed buildings located at Kanan Vihar, Chandrasekharpur and Dharmasala in Jajpur district.
The agency also detected 13 high-value land parcels, including seven plots in prime areas of Bhubaneswar, five in Jajpur district and one in Baripada. Several of the Bhubaneswar properties are located in sought-after localities such as Niladri Vihar, Sailashree Vihar, Bomikhal and Ghatikia.
Besides the real estate holdings, Vigilance recovered cash amounting to Rs 2.66 lakh during the searches. Gold ornaments were also found, and their weight and valuation are being assessed.
Officials said details of bank deposits, postal savings, insurance policies and investments in various financial instruments are being verified. Two bank lockers operated in the name of Behera’s spouse at Axis Bank and Union Bank of India branches in Chandrasekharpur are yet to be opened.
The Vigilance Technical Wing has been tasked with measuring and assessing the market value of the buildings and land parcels. Searches were continuing till late Saturday, and officials said the exact extent of the alleged disproportionate assets would be known after completion of the ongoing verification and valuation process.