‘Fake Odisha govt engineer scams’ farmers with borewell promise

In a case of rural fraud, a man posing as a Junior Engineer (JE) has allegedly cheated over 60 farmers by promising to dig borewells in Bolangir district, sources said on Thursday. The accused is reported to have collected more than Rs 6 lakh.

Also Read: Woman uses digital technology, dupes builders, and businessmen of crores in Odisha

According to sources, a major scam has come to light in the Sindhekela police limits of Bolangir district, where a fraudster impersonating a government Junior Engineer allegedly duped more than 60 local farmers. The trickster man had allegedly convinced the farmers from Kudusuda, Chandotara, and Bhursaguda panchayats that he could arrange for deep borewell drilling under government schemes.

Trusting the false promise, the farmers paid the man substantial sums of money, amounting to over Rs 6 lakh in total. The victim farmers later realised they had been cheated when no borewells were dug and the alleged JE disappeared without a trace.

Upon discovering the fraud, the affected farmers lodged an FIR with the Sindhekela police. The incident has caused serious concern among the local agricultural community, who were counting on irrigation support ahead of the upcoming crop season.

Police are now probing the case, and efforts are underway to trace and apprehend the accused man. Meanwhile, local leaders have urged the district administration to tighten vetting processes to prevent such impersonation scams in the future.

“A man came to us and promised us to dig borewells and duped each of us of Rs 12,500 to Rs 20,000. He had assured us that the digging machine would come in a day or two. He has cheated around 60-65 farmers,” a resident of Pandara, Keshab Majhi, expressed.

“The man has also collected different amounts ranging between Rs 1,000 and Rs 10,000. Even, he has taken Rs 25,000 from some of the farmers. He impersonated a government official. We believed the trickster and paid him the money,” Keshab Majhi stated.