Bhubaneswar: Odisha Vigilance officials today apprehended Assistant Fisheries Officer (AFO) Suresh Kumar Behera of Polasara in Ganjam district for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of ₹8,000 through a digital payment platform.
According to Vigilance sources, Behera demanded the bribe from a beneficiary of the Assistance to Network Fish Seed Growers Scheme to release a subsidy amount of around ₹1.38 lakh and issue a money receipt for the procurement of fish spawn.
As per government norms, the beneficiary is entitled to 60% of the total investment under the scheme. The complainant had invested ₹2,31,390 for the project, which included ₹43,000 paid through Behera for procuring fish spawn from a government hatchery at Bhanjanagar. However, the AFO allegedly withheld the money receip