21 officers suspended over ₹40-crore ‘farm rip-off’ in Maharashtra 

Twenty-one authorities officers in Maharashtra’s Jalna district have been suspended for allegedly embezzling ₹40 crore meant for farmers affected by local weather disasters like drought and heavy rains.

Following a five-month probe, 10 village income officers (talathis) had been suspended on June 13. One other 11 officers had been suspended Thursday, mentioned Further District Justice of the Peace Ganesh Mahadik.

The rip-off was uncovered in Ambad and Ghansawangi tehsils, which obtained ₹80 crore underneath 10 authorities resolutions handed between 2020 and 2025. “Of this, ₹40 crore was misappropriated,” mentioned Mr. Mahadik.

Investigators discovered false beneficiaries listed on the federal government’s E-Panchnama Fee Disbursement portal, together with pals and family of accused officers. “Some had been from exterior the village; some land areas had been inflated or falsely proven as personal,” Mr. Mahadik mentioned.

A workforce led by Deputy Collector Manisha Dandage inspected data of two.5 lakh farmers and located most real farmers obtained nothing. The investigation is ongoing, with 35 extra talathis underneath scrutiny.