Bhubaneswar, Oct 22 Odisha Vigilance officials on Thursday unearthed assets, including three multi-storey buildings, a farmhouse, three high-value plots and 550 grams of gold, allegedly belonging to a government engineer during raids at seven locations, officials said.
The raids were conducted on the properties of Tapan Sethi, assistant executive engineer (AEE) in the Roads and Buildings Department’s Badachana sub-division in Jajpur district, following allegations that he had amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, they said.
During searches at seven locations in Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Puri and Badachana in Jajpur district, the vigilance officials found three multi-storey buildings in Bhubaneswar, Puri and Cuttack, a farmhouse in Cuttack, three high-value plots in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, and 550 grams of gold, the officials said.
Two cars, two motorcycles and a bank locker were also found during the searches.
“The locker is yet to be opened. Deposits and other investments in financial instruments are being ascertained,” a vigilance officer said.
Further searches were underway, he added.
Sethi joined the Odisha government service in 1997 as a junior engineer (civil) with an initial monthly salary of Rs 5,000. He was promoted to assistant engineer in 2018 and to AEE in 2022.
He has been serving as AEE in the Roads and Buildings Department’s Badachana sub-division since October 2023, sources said.
(PTI News)
