Vigilance officers locked inside Kaniha CHC following arrest of corrupt doctor

Kaniha: A team of Odisha Vigilance officer were locked inside the Kaniha Community Health Center following the arrest of the CHC doctor while he was taking bribe of Rs 49,000 here in Angul on Saturday.

According to sources, the villagers locked the main gate of the Community Health Center demanding the appointment of another doctor after the working doctor Dr. Sumanta Kumar Patel was arrested by the Vigilance team. The Angul CDMO intervened and promised to appoint a doctor soon. After getting reassurance from the CDMO, the villagers finnaly relented and unlocked the gate and let the Vigilance team leave the CHC.

Vigilance arrested Dr. Sumanta Kumar Patel for taking bribe of Rs 49,000

The Vigilance team arrested Dr. Sumanta Kumar Patel, the Medical Officer of CHC Kaniha of Angul after he was caught red handed while demanding and taking bribe of Rs.49,000 in lieu of grant of incentive to CHOs (Community Health Officers).

The team has seized the entire tainted bribe money from the doctor and has initiated simultaneous searches at three locations linked to Dr. Patel from Disproportional Asset (DA) case angle.

A case has been registered  Cuttack Vigilance Police Staion under Case No- 02 dt. 15.01.2026 U/s 7PC (Amendment) Act, 2018 against the accused Dr. Patel. Investigation is in progress.