He was produced before court and remanded to jail custody till February 13.

On January 30, the Vigilance sleuths had detected a 2-BHK flat in Bhubaneswar, and triple-storey building and 11 plots in Jalweswar, Balasore, during raids at seven places in Bhubaneswar (Khurda) Balasore and Malkangiri districts, including Mohanty’s office chamber and official residence.

ASSETS UNEARTHED

1) One triple-storey building over 10,000 sqft at Deulipanchughanta, Jaleswar, Balasore.

2) One 2-BHK flat at Green Homes Apartment, Raghunathpur, in Bhubaneswar.

3) 11 plots in and around Jaleswar town.

4) Rs 1,43,220 in cash.

5) 1 four-wheeler (Honda City) and 2 two-wheelers worth about Rs 12.70 lakh.

6) Bank & Insurance deposits worth approx Rs 8 lakh.

7) Gold and household articles worth over Rs 14.18 lakh.

Mohanty was found in possession of disproportionate assets, which were 236% more than his known sources of income.

“A dream come true. This board fills my heart with great joy. The farthest district is being connected by scheduled flights soon. Hon’ble CM will be landing at the Malkangiri airport and inaugurate in early January. What a sight that would be …” he wrote.

It would be the biggest New Year gift for the people of Malkangiri district.

The airport has come up over 94.5 hectare land at an estimated cost of Rs 33.03 crore. December 2023 was the target set for completing runway and other facilities.

The state government, which had put the project on fast-track claiming that it would accelerate commercial activities and economic development in the region, will provide subsidy to the airline to make air tickets affordable for the passengers. Initially, flight services will be made available between Malkangiri and Bhubaneswar and later extended to Visakhapatnam, sources said.

This will take the number of operational airports in the state to seven.

Malkangiri airport is the second significant connectivity project in the district after Gurupriya bridge over river Janbai, inaugurated by the Chief Minister in 2018. It went on to become the paragon of development in Swabhiman area, once considered a Maoist hotbed, by providing connectivity to 151 villages spread over eight panchayats with a population of 30,000 tribals that were cut-off from the mainland for over five decades.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik flagged off bus service via video conferencing from Bhubaneswar. “This has started a new trend of development in the panchayats, connecting villages with villages, while strengthening social connect as well as economy of the state,” he said.

In the first phase of the scheme, 36 LAccMI buses will ply, connecting 126 panchayats and 7 blocks in Gajapati with the district headquarters, he said, adding that 69 new bus stoppages have been built, 64 renovated.

Naveen also mentioned about inauguration of the initiative in Malakangiri, where 36 buses started plying on different routes on October 12. “More than 1,000 buses will run across the state under this scheme,” he said.

After Malkangiri and Gajapati, four other tribal-dominated districts — Nabarangpur, Koraput, Rayagada and Kandhamal — will be covered by this robust bus service in the first phase.

The CM also said that his government is currently focussing on development of villages in the state through ‘Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha’ scheme, where in people will able to avail facilities as in urban areas including banking, internet and digital infrastructure.

Meanwhile, the indefinite strike launched by private bus operators has disrupted normal life with thousands of passengers stranded in bus terminals across Odisha.

While appealing to the umbrella association to withdraw its decision in view of the festive season, Commerce and Transport Minister Tukuni Sahu had asserted that LAccMI is a people-friendly scheme and it will continue.

The team consists of 5 senior experts from 5 different clinical departments as per the requirement of the enlisted patients. They will serve and treat the patients up to August 31.

The team consists of Dr A Jena, Nephrologist; Dr BK Das Cardiologist; Dr S Sethi Surgery specialist; Dr S Rana , Radiologist; and Dr C Pradhan, Anesthesiologist.