Rayagada: The Bisam-Cuttack police have arrested five people in connection with pipe theft from the mega project site under the Bisam-Cuttack police station in the Rayagada district of Odisha.
The five arrested include Jagbandhu Jena, Jagbandhu Jena, Ranjan Perisika, Praveen Banasi and Rajesh Banasi and have been charged with stealing cast iron pipes from the project site and selling them to scrap companies.
According to information, the construction of a mega drinking water tank in the Bisham-Cuttack block’s Kukharbhamuni panchayat has been going on for quite some time now. The accused stole 354 cast iron pipes scattered at the construction site of the mega drinking water plant.
The developer of the project lodged two notices with the Bhisam-Cuttack police station in this connection on December 24 and January 4. This led the police to take the thefts seriously and start an investigation.
During the initial investigation, the police became suspicious when they found Jagbandhu and Ranjan frequenting the project site. The police checked the past records of these two accused and sent a team to Srikakulam in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh on January 23. The team, with the help of Andhra Police, raided Sriganesh Private Limited Company and arrested two persons. During their interrogation in Bisam-Cuttack, police learned about the racket in stolen pipes. Subsequently, police seized some trucks used in the theft of stolen pipes.
According to sources in the police, the estimated value of the stolen pipes from the site is about Rs 38 lakh. Bisam-Cuttack SDPO is continuing the probe into the case to trace all those involved in the crime.
