Bhubaneswar: On charges of demanding and accepting bribe to process a building plan approval file, the Odisha Vigilance officials apprehended an Amin in Puri district today.

According to Vigilance sources, Bijay Kumar Grahacharya, Amin of Nimapara NAC, was caught while accepting the third and final instalment of a bribe of ₹17,000 from an applicant. This was part of an alleged total bribe demand of ₹30,000 for clearing the applicant’s building plan.

The applicant had submitted a building plan in March for approval to construct a house in the Nimapara NAC area. Despite repeated follow-ups, Grahacharya allegedly delayed the file unnecessarily and demanded ₹33,000 to process it. When the applicant expressed inability to pay the amount, the bribe demand was reduced to ₹30,000.

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A few days ago, Grahacharya had reportedly taken two instalments of ₹3,000 and ₹10,000. After the applicant lodged a complaint, the Vigilance team laid a trap.

Today, as soon as Grahacharya accepted the remaining ₹17,000, he spotted the Vigilance officials and attempted to discard the money by dropping it on the footrest of a scooter parked outside the office. However, the Vigilance team intercepted him, recovered the tainted cash, and seized it.

Simultaneous searches were underway at two locations linked to Grahacharya to verify whether he had amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.

The Bhubaneswar Vigilance Police Station has registered Case No. 26 dated 28.11.2025 under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act. Further investigation is in progress.