Mangaluru: Agriculture Dept official caught accepting bribe

Mangaluru: An official of the Agriculture department was caught red-handed while accepting a bribe, Lokayukta Police said on Saturday.

The accused has been identified as Bharatamma, the Deputy Director of Agriculture in Mangaluru.

Police said they launched an operation based on a complaint by Paramesh N P, a retired forest officer.

According to the complainant, Bharatamma had demanded a 15 percent cut for releasing arrears worth Rs 50 lakhs for bills related to “Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana WCD 2.0”. Later the agriculture officer revised the bribe required to Rs 1 Lakh.

Bharatamma was caught by the officials while accepting the said bribe on October 21. The accused would be produced before the court, police added.