Maha: ACB files cases against 5 forest department officials for malpractices in water scheme

Pune, Jun 13 (PTI) The Anti-Corruption Bureau has registered two separate cases against five forest department personnel in connection with alleged irregularities in the work of 'Jalyukta Shivar' water conservation scheme in Karjat tehsil of Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district, ACB officals said on Monday.

Three of the five accused have been arrested by the police.

Jalyukta Shivar was the flagship programme undertaken by the erstwhile Devendra Fadnavis government (2014-19) to make villages drought-free.

According to the ACB officials, work to dig deep moats in the Chande Khurd area was undertaken between February 27, 2016, and March 31, 2016, and the said work was executed by accused forest officials - Ramesh Golekar (now retired), the then-assistant conservator of forest Shankarrao Patil, Forest Range Officer Pallavi Jagtap and Balbheem Gangarde, a retired forest guard.

"The accused showed the names of 12 labourers in the cashbook despite that they did not work and showed a payment of Rs 4,454 each by taking forged signatures and committed corruption of Rs 58,248," said an ACB official.

He added that of the four, two accused, Gangarde and Patil, have been arrested and are currently in police custody.

The official said in the second case three accused - Patil, Golekar and one Shekhar Patole - have been booked for alleged irregularities to the tune of over Rs 9,000 in the Jalyukta Shivar work in Kombali village under Karjart tehsil of the western Maharashtra district.

Patil and Golekar are common accused in both the cases, while Patole has been arrested in the second case, he added. PTI SPK RSY RSY