Chennai, Nov 11 (IANS) Funds meant to strengthen rural infrastructure and build health facilities in Tamil Nadu have allegedly been stolen in a cyber fraud involving Rs 22.10 crore, prompting an investigation into the security of government banking transactions.
The money, allocated to the Rural Development Department under the 15th Finance Commission, was allegedly diverted from government bank accounts linked to three locations.
Investigators suspect the perpetrators exploited access to a specialised transaction portal to move the funds. Preliminary findings indicate that the transfers were executed within two hours of the treasury crediting the money.
The speed of the operation has drawn investigators’ attention to how the perpetrators obtained access and timed the transactions.
An account linked to Mandapam in Ramanathapuram district suffered the biggest loss, with Rs 14 crore allegedly siphoned off. Another Rs 5 crore was diverted from Dharapuram in Tiruppur district, while the remaining Rs 3.10 crore was reportedly taken from Tambaram.
The stolen funds had been earmarked for rural development projects, including the construction of rural health and wellness centres.
The alleged diversion has raised concerns over the safeguards governing transfers of public money intended for essential infrastructure.
Investigators are examining the transaction portal, which was developed in collaboration with a private banking institution, to establish how unauthorised access occurred.
They are checking whether government officials’ login credentials were compromised and whether any bank personnel facilitated the fraud.
The Chennai Central Crime Branch’s Cyber Crime wing suspects that an international cybercrime syndicate may have orchestrated the operation.
One line of enquiry concerns the possible involvement of a Nigerian gang using local networks in Chennai, Coimbatore and Tiruppur. These suspicions remain under investigation.
Authorities are also examining whether the case has links to a similar cyber fraud recently reported in Puducherry.
The money was allegedly routed through multiple mule accounts, which investigators are working to identify and freeze.
Efforts are underway to trace the IP addresses used for the transactions and reconstruct the movement of funds.
The incident has also sparked political criticism, with Opposition leaders questioning the state government’s administrative oversight and cybersecurity arrangements.
The investigation remains focussed on identifying those responsible, establishing the point of entry into the transaction system and tracing the diverted money.
The respective roles, if any, of insiders and external operators have yet to be established.
–IANS
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