₹30,000 Bribe Leads to Arrest of Deputy Director of Mines; ₹4.27 Crore Cash, Gold Seized

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Vigilance on Wednesday arrested the Deputy Director of Mines, Cuttack Circle, for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of ₹30,000 from a businessman. The accused officer, Debabrata Mohanty, was caught in a trap laid by Vigilance officials after a complaint was lodged against him. The bribe amount was recovered from his possession.

Subsequent searches at his rented flat in Bhubaneswar led to the recovery of cash amounting to ₹4,27,13,600. Officials also seized gold jewellery weighing 305.40 grams and silver ornaments weighing 600 grams during the raids. In addition, a palatial double-storeyed building located at Pahala in Bhubaneswar was unearthed during the investigation.

Mohanty, who joined government service in 2004, had served in various capacities in the Mining Office, including as Junior Mining Officer, Assistant Mining Officer, and Deputy Director of Mines.

Vigilance authorities have stated that further investigation is underway to ascertain details of his investments, bank deposits, and insurance policies, and to verify whether the assets are disproportionate to his known sources of income.