Bhubaneswar/Bhawanipatna: A 47-year-old Roads and Buildings (R&B) engineer, who entered government service nearly 27 years ago with a modest monthly salary of Rs 6,000, has come under the scanner of Odisha Vigilance for allegedly amassing assets worth crores of rupees disproportionate to his known sources of income.
Simultaneous searches were conducted Tuesday at six locations linked to Bhubaneswar Sabar, Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE), R&B Division, Bhawanipatna, who is currently serving as Executive Engineer-in-charge of the division. The raids were carried out by Odisha Vigilance on the strength of search warrants issued by the Special Judge, Vigilance, Bhawanipatna.
The searches, led by six DSPs, eight inspectors and supporting staff, unearthed massive movable and immovable assets in the name of Sabar and his family members. Vigilance officials said the value of the assets detected so far is likely to run into several crores of rupees.
Among the major detections are four multi-storeyed buildings, a farmhouse spread over nine acres, a market complex with eight cabins, and 33 plots measuring around 39.64 acres in different parts of Kalahandi district.
The properties include a 4,500-square-foot double-storeyed building at Gosanimunda in Bhawanipatna town, another 2,625-square-foot building at Kusumkhunti in Koksara, and two under-construction double-storeyed buildings at Moter Chhak and Kusumkhunti.
Vigilance officials also detected a market complex at Moter Chhak and an expansive farmhouse at Kitpadar near Bhawanipatna.
Investigators further traced 33 land plots located in and around Bhawanipatna, Koksara, Dwarsuni, Kitpadar, Talabelagaon and Kutenpadar. Measurement and valuation of the assets are being carried out by the Vigilance Technical Wing.
Officials also found a Hyundai Creta, while details of bank deposits, postal savings and investments in financial instruments are being verified.
According to Vigilance records, Sabar joined government service July 1, 1999, as a junior engineer in the R&B Division at Sunabeda in Koraput district with an initial salary of Rs 6,000 per month.
He later served in Nabarangpur, Bhawanipatna and Dharamgarh before being promoted to Executive Engineer in March 2024.
Search operations continued till the filing of this report.
UNI