The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC), Vellore unit arrested a retired surveyor who claimed to be a surveyor in service in the Vaniyambadi taluk office. He allegedly received bribe for surveying the house site of a person belonging to Alangayam at the office of the Village Administrative Officer in Kothakottai on Friday.
According to DVAC sources, P. Sivakumar (29) of Alangayam had lodged a complaint with the DVAC that while he had paid the prescribed fee for survey and sub-division of his house site in Alangayam, G. Durairaj (60) of Pernambut, who claimed to a surveyor attached to the Vaniyambadi taluk office, had asked him to pay Rs.4000 for surveying the land and issuing the patta. On his request, he scaled down the amount to Rs.3000.
The DVAC laid a trap and arrested Durairaj when he accepted Rs.3000 from Sivakumar at the VAO office Kothakottai on Friday. On investigation, Sivakumar confessed that he had retired as surveyor about two years ago, and that he was `engaged’ by the head surveyor of the Vaniyambadi taluk office to survey the house sites owing to the shortage of staff in the taluk office.
Out of four firka surveyors’ posts in the taluk, in three firkas the posts were vacant. His survey reports used to be signed by the Tahsildar and pattas issued to the site owners.
