Anti-Corruption Bureau officials arrested a Senior Environmental Engineer of the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board for reportedly owning assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, amounting to Rs.7 crore, here on Thursday.
The engineer, Korukonda Ramesh, who was in the task force division of the Pollution Control Board and had five coastal districts-- from Srikakulam to West Godavari-- under his jurisdiction. The ACB sleuths led by Deputy Superintendent of Police, Narasimha Rao, conducted the raid simultaneously at10 places across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and seized properties and documents that is valued to be around Rs. 7 crore.
The raids were conducted at five places in Visakhapatnam, one place in Srikakulam, two in Ponduru in Srikakulam district, one at Kothagudem and Palwancha in Khammam district each.
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Ramesh, a native of Ponduru, joined the department in 1988, as junior engineer, and worked in various capacities in Hyderabad, Kothagudem and Visakhapatnam. His wife, G. Sashi, is an assistant engineer in the Panchayat Raj Department and is currently posted at Kothagudem, said Mr. Narasimha Rao.
During the raid, the ACB sleuths seized documents of three apartments belonging to Mr. Ramesh in Visakhapatnam located at Srinagar, Pithapuram Colony and Visalakshmi Nagar and documents of 10 house plots located in Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and Ponduru.
The ACB also seized documents pertaining to 10 acre of agriculture land in Srikakulam, Ponduru and Visakhapatnam district. “He has a bank balance of Rs. 9 lakh and another Rs. 9 lakh in GPF account. We also seized 3 kg of silver, 14 tolas of gold and Rs. 36,000 in cash from his residence at Srinagar. He has two lockers in Kothagudem, which are likely to be opened on Friday,” said Mr. Narasimha Rao.
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According to sources in the ACB, fixed deposits to the tune of Rs. 29 lakh and about 30 tolas of gold is put away in the lockers at Kothagudem. Ramesh will be produced before the special court on Friday.