DVAC seizes ₹95,000 in cash at RTO check post near Katpadi

In the early hours on Thursday, the sleuths from the Vellore unit of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) seized ₹95,000 from the check post of the Regional Transport Office (RTO) at Christianpet near Katpadi in Vellore.

Christianpet is a border village connecting neighbouring Andhra Pradesh (Chittoor) with Katpadi in Vellore. It has two checkposts — one maintained by the district police and the other by the transport department separately.

The search lasted for five hours between 5 a.m. and 10 a.m. on Thursday. The surprise check comes after similar searches were carried out by the DVAC, in which unaccounted cash was seized at the Sub-Registrar office in Velapadi in Vellore recently.

The two teams, comprising four officials each, were led by DVAC inspector Mythili, conducted the surprise check at the check post. “Such surprise checks do happen regularly. Before going for such checks, we ensure that we verify our alerts with multiple sources,” said a DVAC official.

The significance of conducting the surprise check early in the morning, DVAC officials said, was that transport staff changed their shift around that time with their collections. They also said the check post witnesses more goods-laden lorries during early hours of the day, especially from neighbouring States like Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh to reach Chennai, Tiruvannamalai and Puducherry.

These vehicles rush through the check posts at Christianpet near Vellore to avoid traffic snarls at industrial zones in Sriperumbudur and Irungattukottai areas in Kancheepuram. It is also a key route for Tirupati-bound buses from Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Ranipet and neighbouring districts.

After more than three decades of its formation, the police check post at Christianpet got a permanent building. The check post is fitted with two high powered Automatic Number-Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras to prevent smuggling of banned products and crime.