26 officials suspended for misuse of funds

Belagavi, Mar 20: A total of eight assistant agriculture officers, two revenue inspectors and 16 village accountants from Gokak taluk have been suspended pending department inquiry for misappropriating funds released by the government for compensating the farmers who had suffered losses during hailstorms in the month of February and March 2014. Criminal cases would also be filed against the suspended personnel.

Deputy Commissioner N Jayaram told reporters on Thursday that government had released Rs 52 crore for the district to provide compensation for the farmers in Gokak, Raibag, Athani and Ramdurg taluks who had suffered losses due to the hailstorms.

In the funds released, Rs 1.63 crore had been misappropriated in Gokak taluk with the officials selecting wrongful beneficiaries. Show-cause notices had been issued to 39 personnel and they have been suspended as their replies were found not satisfactory. Departmental inquiry would be conducted against them and criminal cases would also be filed. Police investigating the cases would act against the wrongful beneficiaries, he said.

The suspended assistant agriculture officers are P B Halagi, L S Shirgihal, V G Metri, V B Biraj, Y B Hadpad, V T Sanadi, A H Nadaf and P A Koldur. The suspended revenue inspectors are P S Kulkarni and R I Nesargi. Village accountants who are suspended are M A Mulla, K B Shashtri, G M Nadaf, S N Ugalat, S K Tuppad, R S Nadugeri, S B Sorannavar, R B Avaradi, N S Kade, S V Patil, K B Pattar, S B Paschapur, M A Hanchinal, Sundar Pujeri, M H Madiwalar and R V Hiremath, Jayaram added.

Comments

Add new comment

Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.

‘Profit’ trap: Mangaluru trader duped of ₹33.1 lakh in online App scam

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A 34-year-old fruit and vegetable trader in Mangaluru has reportedly lost ₹33.1 lakh after falling victim to an online investment scam run through a fake mobile app.

Police said the scam began in September, when the victim received a link on Facebook. Clicking it connected him to a WhatsApp number, where an unidentified person introduced a high-return investment scheme and instructed him to download an app.

To build trust, the fraudster asked him to invest ₹30,000 on September 24. The trader soon received ₹34,000 as “profit,” convincing him the scheme was genuine. Over the next two months, he transferred money in multiple instalments via Google Pay and IMPS to different scanner codes and bank accounts shared by the scammers. Between September 24 and December 3, he ended up sending a total of ₹33.1 lakh.

When he later requested a refund of his investment and promised returns, the scammers demanded additional payments, claiming he needed to pay a “service tax” first. Even after he paid a small amount, no money was returned, and the scammers continued pressuring him for more.

A case has been registered at the CEN Crime Police Station.

Comments