BY TC News Desk
Agartala, 3rd April 2025: The Kumarghat DWS office in Unakoti district has become a focal point of controversy with allegations of corruption and non-compliance with the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Executive Engineer Kanyadhan Jamatia and SDO Alok Das were suspended in December last year over corruption charges. However, the state government has yet to uncover the full extent of the alleged misconduct.
Reports suggest that bills amounting to several crores of rupees were embezzled through the Kumarghat branch without any actual work being carried out. “Most of these fraudulent bills are linked to Form XI,” an insider revealed. Allegations have surfaced that two influential leaders of the ruling party issued work orders under the names of family members, associates, and even their house managers, siphoning off funds. Preliminary investigations indicate a scam of approximately Rs 5 crore implicating a work assistant and a junior engineer.
Rintu Lal Deb, an advocate for transparency has been vocal about the issue. “The state government seems intent on masking the real culprits by merely suspending two senior officials,” he stated. In January, Deb filed an RTI application to access departmental accounts for 2023-24 and 2024-25. Despite adhering to all procedural requirements, the department failed to provide the requested information within the mandated two-month period.
Frustrated by the lack of response, Deb has escalated the matter to higher authorities. “If the information is still withheld, I will be compelled to take more drastic action,” he warned. Meanwhile, public sentiment is growing increasingly critical of the state government’s handling of the scandal. Even within the ruling party, voices raised for a thorough investigation to identify the true perpetrators.
