₹900 Cr Jal Jeevan Mission scam: arrest warrant issued against retired IAS officer Subodh Agarwal

A special Anti Corruption Bureau court in Jaipur has issued arrest warrants against retired IAS officer Subodh Agarwal and three others in connection with an alleged ₹900 crore scam linked to the tender process under the Jal Jeevan Mission in Rajasthan.

The warrants were issued by ACB Court No. 1 against Agarwal along with Jitendra Sharma, Sanjeev Gupta and Mukesh Goyal, officials said on Friday. Teams from the Anti Corruption Bureau have begun conducting raids at multiple locations to trace and arrest the accused.

Officials said that if the warrants cannot be executed, the court may order attachment of the properties of the accused. A lookout notice had already been issued earlier against Agarwal, who served as Additional Chief Secretary in the Public Health and Engineering Department when the alleged irregularities took place during the tenure of the previous Congress government in the state.

The case is linked to alleged manipulation of the tender process for projects under the Jal Jeevan Mission, a major rural drinking water scheme. According to investigators, fake completion certificates worth nearly ₹960 crore were allegedly submitted to make certain contractors eligible to bid for large government projects.

Investigators say these forged documents helped contractors qualify for tenders they were otherwise not eligible for, allowing contracts worth hundreds of crores to be awarded improperly. The alleged irregularities are believed to have led to the siphoning of public funds involving contractors, senior engineers and officials .

The investigation has already led to the arrest of nine people last month , including senior engineers and retired officials suspected to be involved in the case. Officials said the probe is continuing and further action may follow as the agency examines the financial trail and the tender process linked to the contracts.

Launched in 2019, the Jal Jeevan Mission is a flagship programme of the Central government aimed at providing piped drinking water to every rural household through functional household tap connections.