Four officials of Maha tribal development corporation suspended for irregularities in procurement of grains

Meanwhile, Thane MLA Sanjay Kelkar in a release claimed that he had exposed the irregularities and fraud, following which the probe was carried out, and after a year the officials have been suspended.

Four officials of the Maharashtra State Tribal Development Corporation have been suspended for alleged irregularities in the procurement and distribution of grains, an official said. The corporation's managing director Leena Bansod issued suspension orders against four officials of the Shahapur sub-regional office in Thane district, he said.

As per the order, a probe following allegations of misappropriation by officials had revealed rampant irregularities and cooking up of records in case of procurement and distribution of grains. The accused officials' actions over a period of three years from 2019 to 2021 had resulted in losses to the tune of crores and villagers were deprived of their quota of grains, it said.

The irregularities came to light when the Kisan Support Price (KSP) procurement scheme was under audit by senior officials at Shahapur, it was stated. Meanwhile, Thane MLA Sanjay Kelkar in a release claimed that he had exposed the irregularities and fraud, following which the probe was carried out, and after a year the officials have been suspended. Kelkar also demanded a probe by the anti-corruption bureau against the suspended officials. He claimed that as per the preliminary report, the misappropriation was to the tune of Rs 137 crore.