Renowned Indian Forest Service officer IFS Sanjeev Chaturvedi has once again brought a major corruption case to light, this time in Uttarakhand.
Acting on his investigation report, the state government has taken a tough stance, issuing a show-cause notice to senior IFS officer and Conservator of Forests Vinay Kumar Bhargav over allegations of “serious financial irregularities”.
The notice follows Chaturvedi’s detailed probe, which uncovered large-scale discrepancies during Bhargav’s tenure as Divisional Forest Officer of Pithoragarh Forest Division.
The alleged irregularities, running into crores of rupees, date back to 2019 and involve unauthorised construction of concrete structures in the Munsyari Range without prior approval or clearance from competent authorities.
It has been alleged that a private firm was selected for supplying construction material without any tendering process or sanction and was paid a lump sum amount, bypassing mandatory procedures.
The entire construction took place in a reserved forest area, violating provisions of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, as no prior permission was sought from the central government.
During his posting as DFO in Munsyari Range, Bhargav oversaw unauthorised construction of a hostel, a sales centre for forest cottage industry products, ten VIP eco-huts and a growth centre.
In his investigation report, running over 500 pages and submitted in December 2024 and January 2025, Chaturvedi recommended registering a criminal case against Bhargav and transferring the matter to the CBI and Enforcement Directorate for a money laundering probe, as the alleged offences fall under scheduled crimes.
Chaturvedi’s report also cites a 2015 case in which Bhargav was cleared by the government on grounds of “lack of experience” despite allegations of financial irregularities being substantiated during the inquiry.
The show-cause notice, issued by Principal Secretary Forest Ramesh Kumar Sudhanshu, has sought Bhargav’s explanation regarding a Memorandum of Understanding signed in August 2020 to share 70 per cent of tourism income from Munsyari with the Patalthaur Eco Development Committee, even though this body was only registered in September 2020.
Bhargav has also been asked to explain how ₹2 lakh was spent on maintenance and cleaning of 10 fire lines in Pithoragarh district with a total length of only 14.6 km, despite his claim that 90 km were maintained.
Bhargav has been given 15 days to respond to the notice. Failure to do so may lead to further action, adding a serious turn to the case.
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