‘Twisted Transfers’: When Conservation Wins Collided With Corruption in Odisha (2025)

BHUBANESWAR:
2025 will be remembered as a year of sharp contrasts for Odisha’s Forest, Environment and Climate Change department. On the ground, conservation teams delivered rare success stories - from thriving gharial breeding to record-breaking Olive Ridley turtle nesting. Behind the scenes, however, a series of vigilance investigations painted a far more troubling picture.

Across the year, forest officials at multiple levels were arrested or investigated for bribery, fund diversion and possession of assets vastly disproportionate to their known income. The steady stream of cases raised uncomfortable questions about governance inside a department tasked with protecting some of the state’s most valuable natural resources.

Conservation success, administrative stress

Odisha’s conservation record in 2025 was not insignificant. Similipal saw the monitored return of tigress Zeenat after a cross-border tracking operation. The Mahanadi river system recorded its fifth consecutive year of gharial breeding. Along the coast, more than 15 lakh Olive Ridley turtles nested during a single season - the highest recorded in recent memory.

Yet these milestones unfolded against a backdrop of repeated vigilance actions that steadily eroded public confidence in forest administration.

Procurement under the scanner

Late in the year, the state government ordered a probe into alleged irregularities in the procurement of vehicles for forest field staff. Records showed that 51 Mahindra Thar vehicles were purchased at a cost of over ₹7 crore, followed by another ₹5 crore spent on customisation.

This inquiry added to earlier cases, including arrests in Kalahandi where officials were accused of siphoning off plantation funds under compensatory afforestation schemes by routing money through fake labour accounts.

Experts note that such schemes, which rely on public funds and environmental trust, demand financial oversight standards similar to those followed in regulated sectors - where auditing services in india play a crucial role in detecting misuse before losses spiral.

Arrests that shocked the system

Several high-profile arrests defined the year. Divisional forest officer Nityananda Nayak was accused of amassing assets worth several crores, including over a hundred plots, a farmhouse, gold, cash and multiple properties. Vigilance officials alleged his assets exceeded three times his known income.

In another case, deputy ranger Rama Chandra Nepak was arrested after investigators reportedly recovered gold, cash and properties valued at more than five times his declared income. The year closed with the arrest of forester Niranjan Satpathy, just months before retirement, after searches allegedly uncovered gold, buildings, plots, bank deposits and even cryptocurrency holdings.

A contradiction that lingers

Taken together, the cases exposed a pattern that went beyond isolated misconduct. While frontline conservation staff delivered tangible ecological results, repeated vigilance actions suggested systemic weaknesses in internal controls, procurement monitoring and asset verification.

As Odisha enters a new year, the challenge is clear: sustaining conservation success while restoring credibility inside the very institutions meant to protect the state’s forests. Without stronger oversight and accountability, even the most impressive environmental gains risk being overshadowed by questions of integrity.