Odisha Vigilance on Wednesday apprehended a Junior Engineer of the National Health Mission (NHM) posted under the office of the Chief District Medical and Public Health Officer (CDM&PHO), Sundargarh, for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 5,000 from a contractor.

The accused, identified as Sumanta Naik, was caught red-handed by Vigilance officials inside his office while allegedly demanding and taking the bribe to process the release of an Initial Security Deposit (ISD) amount.

According to Vigilance sources, the contractor had earlier carried out repair and renovation work of a Primary Health Centre building and staff quarters in Sundargarh district. Although the work had already been completed, the Junior Engineer allegedly delayed processing the file for release of the contractor’s security deposit.

Officials said the accused allegedly demanded Rs 5,000 to facilitate clearance of the payment. Unable to secure the release of the deposit despite completion of the work, the contractor reportedly approached Vigilance authorities and lodged a complaint.

Acting on the complaint, a Vigilance team laid a trap and apprehended the accused while he was allegedly receiving the bribe amount. The tainted cash of Rs 5,000 was recovered from his possession and subsequently seized.

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Following the trap operation, simultaneous searches were launched at three locations linked to the accused from the disproportionate assets angle.

In this connection, Rourkela Vigilance Police Station Case No. 03/2026 has been registered under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018.

Further investigation into the case is underway, officials said.