India News

CBI takes over probe into Bihar’s Rs 1000 crore Srijan Scam

Published

9 years ago

August 26, 2017

CBI takes over probe into Bihar’s Rs 1000 crore Srijan Scam

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Over the past decade, Srijan Mahila Vikas Sahyog Samiti, a Bhagalpur-based NGO founded by late Manorama Devi, reportedly siphoned off between Rs 700 and Rs 1000 crore from the Bihar government’s treasury through fraudulent means and in connivance with several nationalized banks and government officials. The RJD has called it a bigger scam than Madhya Pradesh’s Vyapam swindle after at least two prime accused in the case were reported dead over the past week.

The CBI has taken over the probe into the Srijan scam in Bihar, in which government funds worth about Rs. 1,000 crore were allegedly diverted to the accounts of a non-government organisation.

The central probe agency has registered 10 FIRs in the case, which was being investigated by the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of the Bihar Police. The CBI took over the investigation after the Bihar government referred the case to it.

Over the past week, Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal uppsed the ante against the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government over the Srijan scam. Lalu’s son, Tejashwi Yadav, who was Bihar’s deputy chief minister till a month ago when Nitish Kumar decided to ditch the RJD and form a ruling coalition with the BJP, has been claiming that the Srijan scam is bigger than the multi-crore-rupee infamous Vyapam swindle of Madhya Pradesh, ever since news of the mysterious death of a key accused arrested in the case broke on August 21.

Mahesh Mandal, who had been arrested and remanded to judicial custody recently for his alleged role in the Srijan scam, had died on the night of August 20 at a hospital in the state’s Bhagalpur district. Accused of acting as a conduit between the Bhagalpur district administration and the NGO that allegedly siphoned off crores of rupees of government funds – Srijan Mahila Vikas Sahyog Samiti – Mandal was reportedly suffering from severe kidney-related ailments and diabetes. He was rushed to the Mayaganj hospital, on Sunday night, after his condition is said to have deteriorated.

Mandal’s family members had alleged foul play in his death and went on a violent protest at the hospital premises following his death. They claimed that despite his poor health condition, Mandal was not provided access to adequate medical treatment in the Bhagalpur Central Jail premises because the “authorities knew that he was going to make major revelations regarding the Srijan scam which had have sent several important people to jail”.

According to sources, the CBI has registered FIRs against the late Manorama Devi, Director of Srijan Mahila Vikash Samilti (the NGO), other officials of the organisation and bank officials, sources said. The agency has received the reference from the Centre to take over the investigation and necessary documents have been received from the Bihar government today.

The Bihar Police had issued a lookout notice against the secretary of ‘Srijan’, Priya Kumar and her husband for allegedly swindling over Rs. 950 crore of government money in Bhagalpur.

Priya Kumar is the daughter-in-law of Manorama Devi, the founder of the NGO. Manorama Devi had died in February this year after which the NGO was being run by Priya Kumar and Amit Kumar, son of Manorama Devi.

Over a dozen people have been arrested and jailed for their alleged involvement in the Srijan scam so far.

[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1503742790813{padding-top: 10px !important;background-color: #a2b1bf !important;}”]The Srijan Mahila Vikas Sahyog Samiti is located in Sabour, about 10 km away from Bhagalpur. The NGO was founded by the late Manorama Devi – who dies in February this year. Over the past decade Srijan reportedly siphoned off between Rs 700 and Rs 1000 crore from the government’s treasury through fraudulent means and in connivance with several nationalized banks and government officials – in particular some members of the Bhagalpur district administration.

On record, the NGO had been involved in providing vocational training to women and selling pickles.

The scam came to light after a government cheque of Rs 10 crore presented at a bank on August 3 bounced due to insufficient funds. The Bhagalpur district magistrate had entrusted the probe to deputy development commissioner Amit Kumar. The state government on August 18 transferred Amit Kumar as district magistrate of Lakhisarai, a decision that immediately triggered protests by the Opposition with Lalu claiming that the government was trying to disrupt the investigation.

During the probe, it was revealed that some officials were perhaps illegally transferring government funds to Srijan’s account by forging the district magistrate’s signature. It is believed that the scam was not confined to one department but had spread to multiple departments beyond Bhagalpur.

Earlier, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had declared in a programme that a big scam of siphoning off government money from the Bhagalpur district treasury by an NGO had happened, and the government had constituted a probe team.

As more skeletons tumbled out of the Srijan closet and the Opposition capitalised on it to corner the state government, Nitish Kumar was forced to recommended a CBI inquiry into the scam.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

Up Next

ED arrests controversial billionaire meat exporter Moin Qureshi

Don't Miss

How the Khattar government abdicated its duties of maintaining order

India News

Delhi-NCR sees second spell of rain and thunderstorms in four days

Delhi-NCR experienced another spell of rain and thunderstorms on March 18, with IMD forecasting more showers over the next few days.

Published

4 hours ago

March 18, 2026

[email protected]

Delhi and parts of the National Capital Region witnessed another spell of rain, thunderstorms, and strong winds on Wednesday evening, marking the second such weather event in the past four days.

The sudden change brought relief from unusually high temperatures recorded earlier this month. According to officials, the temperature at Safdarjung — the city’s base weather station — was recorded at 24 degrees Celsius at 7 pm.

The India Meteorological Department had earlier issued an alert predicting light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning on March 18. Several areas across the capital experienced gusty winds along with brief but intense showers.

More rain likely over next two days

The weather department has forecast partly cloudy skies for March 19 and 20, with chances of light rain or thundershowers occurring once or twice during the day. On March 21, skies are expected to remain cloudy with the possibility of light showers continuing.

Conditions are likely to stabilise from March 23 onwards, with forecasts indicating a return to partly cloudy to clear skies across the region.

Weather activity across India to intensify

The IMD has also indicated widespread weather activity across multiple regions of the country in the coming days. Rainfall is expected to intensify in several states, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds.

In the northeastern region, heavy rainfall is likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya during the early part of the week.

Meanwhile, the western Himalayan region is also set to witness a shift in weather patterns. Himachal Pradesh is likely to receive heavy rainfall on March 19 and 20, while Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir may experience heavy showers around March 20.

India News

Centre pushes states to cut levies to boost PNG adoption

The Centre has asked states to reduce local levies and streamline approvals to accelerate PNG adoption and city gas infrastructure growth.

Published

6 hours ago

March 18, 2026

[email protected]

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has urged states and Union Territories to ease local levies and procedural barriers affecting City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects, in a bid to accelerate the adoption of piped natural gas (PNG) as a cleaner fuel alternative.

In a communication sent to Chief Secretaries, Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary Neeraj Mittal highlighted that high right-of-way charges, road cutting fees, lease rentals and other local levies imposed by urban bodies are discouraging investments in CGD infrastructure.

High costs slowing expansion

The ministry pointed out that the CGD sector, particularly PNG supply to households and commercial establishments, does not receive direct subsidies. As a result, it depends heavily on viable returns, which are being impacted by excessive and inconsistent local charges across states.

It noted that these financial and procedural hurdles are slowing down infrastructure expansion and affecting the broader adoption of natural gas.

Gap between connections and usage

According to the government, while around 12.63 crore PNG connections have been recorded, only about 1.6 crore are currently active. The ministry stressed that improving ease of doing business at state and local levels could help bridge this gap and expand the consumer base.

Officials believe that rationalising levies may initially reduce local revenues but could lead to higher long-term gains through increased gas consumption and economic activity.

LPG shortage adds urgency

The push for PNG adoption comes amid supply constraints in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), linked to ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Oil marketing companies are currently supplying only 20 per cent of normal commercial LPG demand to states.

To address this, the ministry has proposed increasing LPG allocation to 30 per cent for states that implement reforms supporting PNG and CGD expansion.

Reform-linked incentives for states

The Centre has suggested a set of measures that states can adopt to qualify for higher LPG allocations. These include:

Setting up empowered state and district-level committees for faster approvals
Introducing single-window clearance with deemed approvals within 24 hours
Implementing a dig-and-restore model using bank guarantees instead of restoration charges
Eliminating annual rental or lease charges for CGD infrastructure

The ministry said compliance with these reforms would be verified before granting additional LPG allocations.

Industry support measures

The communication also noted that GAIL and its subsidiaries have already allocated full gas supply to the commercial PNG segment to support businesses affected by reduced LPG availability.

The government reiterated that expanding natural gas usage aligns with its broader push for cleaner and domestically sourced energy.

India News

BJP seals Assam seat-sharing pact, Modi to hold 3 rallies in April

BJP has finalised its Assam seat-sharing plan with allies and is gearing up for an intense campaign led by PM Modi and Amit Shah.

Published

6 hours ago

March 18, 2026

[email protected]

The Bharatiya Janata Party has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, firming up its strategy alongside National Democratic Alliance partners as campaigning gathers pace in the state.

Under the agreement, the BJP will contest 89 seats, while its allies — Asom Gana Parishad and Bodoland People’s Front — will field candidates in 26 and 11 constituencies respectively. The distribution has been decided after internal deliberations, with the focus now shifting to candidate announcements and campaign execution.

Campaign push led by top leadership

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address three rallies in Assam during the final leg of the campaign. Tentative dates for the rallies are April 1, April 3 and April 6, with events likely to be held in key constituencies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also set to spearhead an extensive campaign across the state through March, aiming to energise party workers and strengthen voter outreach.

Candidate selection underway

The party’s Central Election Committee is currently meeting to finalise candidates. Sources indicate that approvals for most constituencies are expected soon, and the BJP may release its complete list of candidates within the next two days.

Ticket distribution remains a crucial exercise, with internal discussions highlighting its potential impact on local political dynamics. Party leaders have also touched upon the proposed delimitation exercise scheduled for 2027, which is expected to have long-term implications for Assam’s electoral landscape.