Keonjhar/Hatadihi/Chhenapadi: A Vigilance court in Keonjhar sentenced three former government employees to two years of rigorous imprisonment (RI) each after convicting them for misappropriation of government rice under a rural employment scheme.
The convicts are retired welfare extension officer Gangadhar Naik, fisheries extension offi cer Ramesh Chandra Sethi and progressive assistant Srikant Sethi. The Special Judge, Vigilance also slapped a fine of Rs 10,000 on each of them, apart from the punishment.
According to officials, the case pertains to the 2002-03 period, when rice allotted under the Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) for use in labour-intensive projects was allegedly misused.
The Vigilance department has also moved the competent authority seeking the stoppage of pension benefits of the convicted individuals, officials said.