Coins worth ₹14.86 lakh missing from Union Bank in Odisha, staff under scanner

Police officials said Santosh Kumar, who joined as branch manager on January 21, detected the discrepancy. Kumar lodged an FIR at Paradip Lock police station against two former bank managers.

Published on: Feb 4, 2021, 24:59:27 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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A whopping ₹14.86 lakh in coins of denominations between Re 1 to ₹10 have gone missing from a branch of the Union Bank of India in the port town of Paradip, prompting the bank authorities to lodge a complaint with the local police.

A candidate from Indore-3 assembly seat in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh Thursday brought ₹10,000 in one-rupee coins as security deposit to accompany his nomination papers. (Reuters File Photo)

Paradip Lock police inspector Prabhas Sahoo said the matter came to light during an internal audit of the branch. “Around 3 lakh coins have been usurped by 4 bank officials between 2016 and 2020. The coins were kept in a vault,” said Sahoo.

Police officials said Santosh Kumar, who joined as branch manager on January 21, detected the discrepancy. Kumar lodged an FIR in this regard at Paradip Lock police station against two former bank managers, Amarjit Panda, Shiva Shankar Padhi and two employees Sangaram Kishore Behera and Saurav Soren. A case has been registered under Sections 420, 409 and 34 of IPC against them.

“It is likely that the bank officials stole the coins everyday over the last 4 years. The CCTV camera feed of the bank may not be available,” said the inspector.

A police team will conduct a probe into the matter. Last month, ₹2.61 crore was misappropriated from the bank’s Sadeipur branch within Balikuda police limits. The funds were allocations towards projects under Ama Gaon Ama Bikash scheme and Critical Grant Funds of the block.

Senior officials from the bank’s headquarters have also started a separate probe into the matter.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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