Odisha Vigilance Nabs Assistant Fisheries Officer, Pvt Person for Bribery

Subarnapur: Odisha Vigilance on Thursday apprehended Bibhuti Bhusan Pradhan, Assistant Fisheries Officer (AFO), Biramaharajpur, and Babulal Barik, a private individual, for accepting a bribe of Rs. 30,000 from a Women’s Self-Help Group (WSHG).

The bribe was demanded to facilitate the release of the second phase subsidy under the “Carp Grow-out in GP Tank by WSHG” scheme.

The operation followed a complaint from the WSHG, which revealed that Pradhan initially demanded Rs. 45,000 to process the subsidy. After the complainant expressed inability to pay, he reduced the amount to Rs. 30,000. Acting on the complaint, the Vigilance team set up a trap and caught Pradhan and Barik red-handed while accepting the bribe. The entire bribe amount of Rs. 30,000 was recovered and seized from the accused.

Both individuals are currently detained at the Sonepur Fisheries Office for further interrogation. Simultaneous searches are underway at two locations linked to Pradhan and one location associated with Barik to investigate potential disproportionate assets.

A case has been registered under Sambalpur Vigilance P.S. Case No. 10, dated April 30, 2025, under Sections 7/12 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018. The investigation is ongoing, with a detailed report to follow.

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