BHUBANESWAR: Starting with a salary of just Rs 2,000 as a stipendiary engineer in 1991, Baikuntha Nath Sarangi, now a chief engineer in Rural Works department, was found to have made a bounty of 10s of crores in his 34-year-long service as a Vigilance raid on Friday detected a cash stash of more than Rs 2.56 crore and at least Rs 15 lakh worth of property and assets in his possession.
Such was the volume of the alleged unaccounted cash in his possession that he began to throw bundles of notes of Rs 500 denomination out of the window as soon as the anti-corruption agency’s officers knocked at the door of his flat in Dumduma here.
The officials then had to recover the cash bundles from the dumping spot. Out of the total cash, Rs 1.21 crore was found from his flat here and Rs 1.30 crore from his house in Angul. Vigilance officials had a tough time counting the cash at both the places.
During the searches, he was also found in possession of a two-storey building spread over 3,200 sq ft at Karadagadia and a double-storey building over 1,000 sqft at Matia Sahi, both in Angul. The chief engineer also owns seven high-value plots in Bhubaneswar and Angul as well as one flat each in the capital city and Pipili.
Vigilance also traced Sarangi’s bank and insurance deposits to the tune of Rs 1.5 crore, investments in shares and mutual funds amounting to Rs 2.7 crore, gold ornaments weighing over 1.1 kg, household articles worth more than Rs 15.44 lakh and 15 expensive imported wrist watches.
He has reportedly also spent a huge amount of money towards his daughter and son’s dental and B.Tech courses respectively in two private colleges here.
On receiving allegations against Sarangi of amassing disproportionate assets, Vigilance officials carried out searches at seven locations linked to him in Bhubaneswar, Pipili and Angul.
Searches were carried out at his office chamber in Bhubaneswar, two houses in Angul, two flats in capital city and Pipili, house of a relative at Sikshyakpada and paternal house at Lokeipasi in Angul.
“Sarangi is being questioned to ascertain the source of money through which he amassed such huge wealth. A detailed verification is continuing and further action will be initiated accordingly,” said Vigilance director, YK Jethwa.
Sarangi had joined government service on September 30, 1991 as a stipendiary engineer in Kaniha block of Angul district under Panchayati Raj department at a monthly salary of `2,000. In 1999, he was regularised as an assistant engineer and posted in PWD division, Sundargarh. In 2014, he was promoted to assistant executive engineer and posted in Rural Development sub-division, Athamallik.
He was promoted to executive engineer in October 2016 and posted in Rural Development division, Deogarh. In January 2023, he was promoted as additional chief engineer and chief engineer (plan roads), Rural Works department in February this year.