Bhubaneswar, Dec 8 (PTI) The Lokayukta of Odisha has directed the state vigilance department to probe into the alleged corruption in the purchase of PPE kits, masks and other materials used to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic situation by a government procurement agency.

The Lokayukta said that the inquiry should be conducted under the supervision of an officer not below the rank of superintendent of police or additional superintendent of police "having impeccable integrity" and its report would have to be submitted within two months.

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The Lokayukta order was issued on Monday after hearing two identical petitions filed by Congress leader Sudarsan Das and NGO activist Susanta Kumar Padhi.

In petitions before the Lokayukta, they alleged that the Odisha State Medical Corporation Limited procured masks, testing kits, Personal protective equipment (PPE) kits, nebuliser, Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RTPCR) machines and other equipment at inflated rates.

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Officers who were made respondents in the case, however, submitted before the Lokayukta that all the procurements were made in a transparent manner through a special committee.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)