Bhubaneswar: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW), Bhubaneswar has arrested one of the accused persons in the agro-equipment subsidy fraud case, a press release issued by the law enforcement agency Wednesday said.
The accused identified as Prahallad Meshua, was arrested from Bheden area in Bargarh district. Earlier, EOW had arrested five persons including the main accused Srinath Rana – the erstwhile Regional Manager of a Bangalore-based company called Varushapriya Agrotech Pvt. Ltd.
It is alleged that accused Meshua — proprietor of Subhalaxmi Traders, Bargarh — along with other fraudsters misappropriated a subsidy amount of Rs 58 lakh released by Odisha government for the procurement of 54 transplanters meant for farmers.
According to EOW, Rana, entered into a criminal conspiracy with Meshua and other fraudsters without the knowledge of Varushapriya Agrotech Pvt Ltd.
The EOW informed that Rana was authorised by the Bangalore-based firm to register the sale of paddy trans-planters in Odisha and to facilitate subsidies to the farmers by accessing the website of the state government’s Agriculture Department.
The accused persons fraudulently uploaded the details of more than 556 paddy trans-planters with fake engine and chassis numbers of machineries along with names and photos of farmers. The scammers deceived the state government by purportedly showing issue or supply of those trans-planters to the said farmers in DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) portal of Agriculture Department as Rana had the credentials of the company to access the official website, the EOW informed.
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They managed to get subsidy to the tune of about Rs 7.16 crore between 2017 and 2021, the agency alleged.
Subsequently, the fraudsters lured farmers by offering them token amounts while keeping the major subsidy for themselves.
The case was filed by KG Sree Charan — Director of M/s Varushapriya Agrotech Pvt. Ltd.– alleging misappropriation of subsidy amount by Srinath Rana using fraudulent means.
Notably, Varushapriya Agrotech Pvt. Ltd — a Bangalore-based company having its branch office in Bhubaneswar’s Baramunda area was meant to deliver services and supplies to Odisha government under various subsidy schemes.
PNN