OTDC staff siphons off Rs 17.50 lakh from ‘Nimantran Restaurant’ accounts; 2 held 

A manager and an assistant manager, accounts, of Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC), were arrested on Thursday for siphoning off Rs 17.50 lakh from ‘Nimantran’ restaurant in a span of six months. 

The matter came to the fore during an audit conducted at the hotel. The accused duo has been identified as manager Ardhendu Shekhar Mohanty and assistant manager (accounts) Sunil Kumar Ghadei. 

A case was registered in this connection by Shahid Nagar police following which the duo was arrested and forwarded to court. Police have launched a probe into the involvement of others in the fraud. 

According to sources, the accused used to siphon off 50 per cent of the hotel’s income on a daily basis and divert the money to their personal bank accounts. Sources said, Sunil has siphoned off RS 10 lakh while the remaining Rs 7 lakh has been spent by the manager. Sunil reportedly used the money to pay online games and has lost all the money.

“It was the duty of senior officials to keep a strict vigil. They call themselves ‘Nimantran’ and invite customers only to loot,” a customer said expressing outrage. 

“This was a great initiative by the government. However, customers will run away if such frauds are done. Government should take strict action against such frauds,” said another customer.

“Both of them were involved in the fraud. One has taken Rs 10L while another has taken Rs 7L. They were arrested after we received a complaint and court forwarded,” said police. 

Worth mentioning, the OTDC restaurant chain was inaugurated by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on September 3, 2021. The restaurant near Ramadevi Women’s University on Janpath serves authentic Odia cuisine.

The aim was to promote and popularize the typical Odia cuisines among the people.