Malkangiri: Police Monday arrested an NGO official here for misappropriating government money meant for training of tribal women.
The accused was identified as Debendra Barik, secretary of Gopabandhu Unnayan Samiti here.
A police team led by SDPO Sarvan Vivek M Sunday night detained Barik and conducted a raid on the office of the NGO at MV-2.
He was arrested Monday morning and remanded in judicial custody after rejection of his bail petition by a court, the police said.
According to reports, the government had sanctioned Rs 5.13 lakh to the NGO for skill enhancement training of 22 women self-help groups under the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA). However, the NGO misappropriated the funds by conducting only three to four training programmes and submitting false bills and utilisation certificates.
The ITDA officials estimated the training cost at just Rs 56,950 and found the balance amount misappropriated.
Based on a complaint lodged earlier, the police registered a case and began investigation Sunday.
Earlier, the same NGO had allegedly embezzled Rs 2.40 lakh in the name of supplying seeds and fertilizer to farmers in Kalimela block. However, it refunded the money to the government after Odia daily Dharitri highlighted the issue. However, no case was registered at that time.
The NGO was involved in implementation of several other government programmes and was in the news for the wrong reasons many times in the past. But the administration is yet to take any exemplary action against it, locals said, adding, the wrongdoing of the NGO is being covered up.
Similarly, machinery supplied by this NGO to the SHGs to establish micro industries are lying defunct, leaving the beneficiaries in the lurch.
Locals demanded immediate probe into all the irregularities and action against the guilty.
PNN
