New Delhi: The search for retired IAS officer Subodh Agarwal—who has been absconding since 17 February, when raids were carried out in connection with a Rs 960 crore Jal Jeevan Mission tender fraud in Rajasthan—has expanded to 21 cities across several states.
The Jaipur-branch of Anti-Corruption Bureau has deployed multiple teams to Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
Officers told ThePrint that the ACB has searched over 100 locations in Jaipur, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Barmer, Kota, Nagaur, New Delhi, Chandigarh, Faridabad, Noida, Meerut, Prayagraj, Bulandshahr and Mumbai. Residences, properties and farm houses in NCR’s Delhi, Faridabad, Noida along with Mumbai have been specifically searched, they said.
Around 50 people have been questioned, including relatives, friends, workers and associates. ACB teams are also going through CCTV footage for any clues about Agarwal.
The ACB in February issued a look-out circular against Agarwal to prevent him from leaving the country. His phone has been unreachable since.
The retired IAS officer is an accused in a 2023 case involving the ACB, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The case is related to two firms that secured Rajasthan government contracts worth approximately Rs 960 crore under the Jal Jeevan Mission, allegedly by submitting forged work-completion certificates.
Jal Jeevan Mission is a central government scheme that aims to provide safe drinking water to households. In Rajasthan, it is implemented by the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED).
A 1988-batch IAS officer, Agarwal retired on December 31, 2025, days after the BJP-led state government sanctioned his prosecution in the case. Agarwal had served as additional chief secretary, PHED.
According to the FIR, Ganpati Tubewell Company, owned by Mahesh Mittal, and Shyam Tubewell Company, owned by Padamchand Jain, submitted certificates purportedly issued by IRCON International Ltd—a public sector undertaking—to qualify for the tenders.
Senior PHED engineers, brokers and the firms allegedly colluded to manipulate tender conditions in their favour. Agarwal is suspected of having facilitated the award of these tenders in favour of the two companies.
So far, 10 accused have been arrested, including the engineers and other officials. Police said ACB teams have seized electronic devices, financial documents, diaries and bank transaction records to follow the money trail.
“Investigation continues in the matter, and more arrests will take place,” ACB Superintendent of Police Pushpendra Singh said Saturday.
The alleged fraud came to light in June 2023, with ACB initially registering the case.
The ACB also registered a separate case in 2024 against former PHED minister Mahesh Joshi and 22 others. Joshi served as the cabinet minister in the previous Congress government in Rajasthan.
(Edited by Prerna Madan)