TRINATH MOHANTY, OP
Bhubaneswar: At least three dozen government officials and employees attached to the Works Department’s Roads and Buildings (R&B) division have been arrested on corruption charges over the past four years, officials said, highlighting widespread corruption within the state infrastructure agency. The arrests stem primarily from charges of possessing assets disproportionate to known sources of income, along with high-value financial embezzlement schemes.
In the latest enforcement action Thursday, Vigilance officials arrested Tapan Sethi, an assistant executive engineer (AEE) with the R&B Division, following raids that exposed assets valued at more than Rs 15 crore. Sethi had entered government service on a monthly salary of just Rs 5,000. The operation follows a series of high-profile crackdowns on state engineering staff. Last month, the anti-corruption sleuths arrested nine employees linked to the alleged embezzlement of Rs 9.24 crore in government funds within R&B Division-1. Vigilance investigators indicated that several additional employees remain under active surveillance in connection with that case.
Likewise, in May 2025, Vigilance official arrested Amiya Kumar Sethi, junior engineer of the Khariar R&B Division in Nuapada, on DA charges. Similarly, Pradeep Kumar Rath, additional chief engineer of R&B Division (Cuttack Circle), was arrested in a DA case for acquiring assets 280% beyond his known sources of income August 6, 2024. In July 2025, Vigilance arrested Raja Kishor Jena, assistant engineer of Bhubaneswar R&B Division, on charges of accumulating DA.
Earlier, Vigilance arrested seven persons—including five serving employees, one retired accounts officer, and one contractor—in connection with a government fund misappropriation case. In February 2023, Ajay Kumar Senapati, Assistant Engineer serving in R&B Division-2, was arrested on DA charges. In August 2024, former Chief Engineer of Bhubaneswar R&B Division, Tara Prasad Mishra, was arrested in a corruption case, while Pradeep Kumar Rath, Additional Chief Engineer of Cuttack Circle R&B Division, was also taken into custody in a DA case.
In June 2025, N Dillip Kumar Choudhury, working in R&B Division-1, was also arrested on DA charges. In this department, a larger number of government employees have been arrested on disproportionate assets charges compared to bribery or embezzlement cases. Commenting on the matter, Vigilance Director YK Jethwa said, “We are keeping a close watch on the R&B department. Anyone who takes a bribe or commits corruption will not be spared. We have our intelligence network working both inside and outside offices. Raids are conducted after verifying incoming information.”
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