BALASORE: A panchayat executive officer has been suspended and showcause notices issued to three other officials for misappropriation of funds meant for excavation of farm ponds under MGNREGA.Official sources said Gobind Chandra Rout, former executive officer of Iswarpur panchayat and presently with Shyamsundarpur panchayat has been suspended.The District Collector, Akhila Bihari Ota, has also issued showcause notices to Gram Rojgar Sevak, additional panchayat technical officer and present sarpanch for their alleged involvement in irregularities.A probe was ordered by the Collector after a report exposing the misappropriation of funds sanctioned for farm ponds was published in the Express in July.It was alleged that NREGA job cards were issued in the names of people like doctors and teachers in Iswarpur panchayat in Oupada block.Besides, the panchayati raj institution members had siphoned off the money withdrawn against these fraudulent cards.Documents available through RTI revealed that former sarpanch of Iswarpur Sanatan Jena got job cards issued in the name of his son Madhabendra Jena, a contractual doctor at a PHC, and three other teachers.Jena was issued a work order to dig a farm pond in 2010-11 and Rs 20,000 was sanctioned for the work but he is said to have been paid | Rs 39,090.Ota said “the reply to the showcause notices is awaited after which disciplinary action will be taken.”
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