In a major crackdown on grassroots-level corruption, Golanthara police on Sunday arrested Samir Kumar Mishra, former Panchayat Executive Officer (PEO) of Keluapalli gram panchayat, for allegedly embezzling nearly Rs1.37 crore by using fake cheque books under Rangeilunda block in Odisha’s Ganjam district.
The scam came to light when the current PEO, Biswajit Ray, discovered a suspicious passbook and reported the anomaly to the Block Development Officer (BDO). This triggered an investigation that revealed large-scale financial misappropriation.
According to police, Mishra had submitted forged passbooks during the 2023–24 audit, siphoning off funds meant for critical government development projects in the region.
He was arrested and produced before the court on the same day. Authorities also seized two mobile phones and an ATM card as part of the investigation.
Efforts are currently underway to trace and recover the embezzled public funds.
