Keonjhar/Hatadihi: The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) has directed the state Planning and Convergence (P&C) department to conduct a thorough probe into the alleged sanction of funds for various projects by a junior revenue assistant (JRA) in the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) in Keonjhar district without official approval.
JRA Uday Narayan Jena posted with DMF, Keonjhar has allegedly approved funds for various projects without any official directive or approval. The CMO has, August 1, ordered a probe into the alleged misuse of power and procedural violations.
The office of the Chief Secretary has also issued a directive to the P&C department to initiate an investigation.
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As per reports, Jena was appointed to Odisha Mineral Bearing Areas Development Corporation (OMBADC) cell as per District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) order no-4302, dated September 30, 2021.
His posting also required him to assist the senior revenue assistant (SRA) in the DMF office. However, Jena allegedly took decisions on fund sanctions and independently processed project files, without any official approval or instructions from his superiors.
It has been alleged that he approved several projects arbitrarily including unapproved ones and increased grant allocations for approved projects, involving funds to the tune of crores of rupees. Despite being a government servant, he also reportedly received substantial remuneration from the DMF fund.
The irregularities further deepen as previous directives such as order no-273 issued by the then DMF Chairperson and Collector N Thirumala Naik September 7, 2017 were allegedly ignored in the process.
Multiple complaints have been filed regarding this matter with the Collector, state Chief Secretary, Finance department, and the CMO. Based on complaint number CMO-20251289239, the CMO has directed the Planning and Convergence department to conduct an inquiry.
The department has confirmed that the complaint is currently under examination. Additionally, the General Administration and Public Grievances department, as well as the Finance department, have reportedly sought a detailed report from the Collector in this regard.
PNN
