Former industries extension officer arrested in ₹3.57-crore Thiruvananthapuram Corporation subsidy fraud

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The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) on Monday arrested a former industries extension officer of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation in connection with a major financial fraud involving the misappropriation of ₹3.57 crore intended for self-employment subsidies.

The accused, identified as Praveen Raj T.R., 37,who hails from Kanjiramkulam, was arrested by the Vigilance Special Investigation Unit-I. Although he previously served in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, he presently serves as the sub-district industries officer for the Kollam taluk.

He has been remanded to judicial custody after being produced before the Thiruvananthapuram Vigilance Court.

The investigation pertains to a project designed to provide subsidies for self-employment ventures for women in the general category during the 2020-2021 financial year. Instead of distributing the ₹3.57 crore subsidy to genuine beneficiaries, the accused allegedly created forged documents to show the funds had been disbursed. The funds were diverted into various bank accounts belonging to a private firm owned by another accused in the case, identified as Sindhu.

Praveen is also accused in two other fraud cases within the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation. While one case involves a misappropriation of ₹24 lakh regarding subsidies for women in the Scheduled Caste category, the other involves a fraud of ₹1.14 crore related to self-employment projects for women from below the poverty line (BPL) families.