2 forest officials suspended for kendu leaf fund irregularities
Two forest personnel have been suspended for allegedly defrauding tribal kendu leaf workers in the Odisha districts of Malkangiri and Koraput.
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Koraput: Two forest personnel have been suspended for allegedly defrauding tribal kendu leaf workers in the Odisha districts of Malkangiri and Koraput.
According to sources, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Jeypore, has suspended a forester and a female forest guard with immediate effect.
Padmini Patnaik, a forest guard, and Durga Prasad Naik, a forester, were identified as the two.
The duo was accused of stealing ex-gratia money provided by the state government for tribal kendu leaf pluckers in the event of death or permanent disability.
They claimed that the two initially demanded a bribe from the tribals in order to receive the ex-gratia and then began squandering the entire sum by threatening the beneficiaries.
According to the sources, the DFO, acting on a complaint, ordered an investigation into the entire incident and suspended the two after the allegations were found to be true.
The accused forest personnel will be suspended until further notice. More information is awaited.
