By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Sending a strong message to its corrupt public servants, Odisha has converted the confiscated house of a tainted government official into a working women’s hostel, an official said Friday.
The hostel at the two-storied house of retired excise superintendent Jalandhar Pradhan at Amalapada village in the district of Kandhamal, about 200 km from here, started functioning Thursday, district collector R.P. Patil told IANS.
The vigilance sleuths of the police department had raided the houses and office of Pradhan in 1989 and had found him possessing assets worth nearly Rs.9 lakh disproportionate to his known source of income.
Though the case was still pending, a special vigilance court had ordered attachment of his properties early this year. The house which was taken over by the district administration was in the name of his wife Rasabati Pradhan.
“A working women’s hostel and two Anganwadi centres have started functioning at the house. We will soon use another confiscated house of Pradhan located in a nearby village for public purposes,” he added.
The state government has been using the confiscated houses of several corrupt officials including those of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) for public purposes with an aim to root out corruption.