Major ACB raids unearth building violations and cash stash

As the corruption probe deepens in Vizag, Anti-Corruption Bureau officials have identified several more leads on unauthorised constructions taking place and kickbacks being given to Town Planning employees.

ACB officials obtained information about a series of unauthorised practices, following the recovery of huge amounts of unaccounted cash worth Rs 2.97 lakhs and Rs 56, 620 during the raids. The cash was found in the possession of Town Planning officials and private people from the Kadapa Municipal office.

ACB sleuths noticed several irregularities during state-wide verification of records. Land included in the list of 22 (1)(b) was prohibited as it fell under government land, but the Tirupati Municipal Corporation and zonal offices allowed the construction of buildings.

In another instance, the Town Planning authorities allowed the construction of an office on land where four separate buildings had obtained permission for construction.

In several cases, the concerned authorities failed to grant approval for building offices within the stipulated timeline, resulting in deemed approvals. They also did not follow up or initiate any action on these cases.

Additionally, the ACB noted that kickbacks were allegedly transferred to Town Planning staff through UPI platforms such as PhonePe and Google Pay.

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