The PCMC chief engineer bribery case has placed Pimpri-Chinchwad’s municipal administration under scrutiny after the Pune Anti-Corruption Bureau detained chief engineer Pramod Sudhakar Ombase over an alleged demand for a Rs 19,000 bribe from a contractor. The action took place at the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation’s main headquarters on Thursday, according to a report by Sakal-Pune citing ACB sources.
Ombase, identified as a Class-I officer and chief engineer number two, was allegedly seeking the money to facilitate a municipal development project involving pipeline and related works. The contractor also alleged that the payment was demanded to move the relevant file forward, the report said.
The contractor approached the Pune ACB after refusing to pay the bribe and submitted a written complaint. ACB officials then discreetly verified the complaint. According to the report, the verification established that a demand for money had allegedly been made in connection with the contractor’s work.
Following the verification, the anti-corruption team arranged a trap at the PCMC headquarters. The ACB detained Ombase from his office while he was allegedly preparing to accept the money from the contractor. The action inside the municipal headquarters drew attention among officers and employees present in the building.
The case involves a senior technical officer who was also holding additional responsibility for several important departments, including environmental engineering, according to the report. The seniority of the officer and the location of the operation have made the incident significant for the municipal corporation’s administrative system, where engineers and technical departments handle the processing and supervision of civic works.
The reported demand came as the legislative council election Model Code of Conduct was nearing its conclusion. The report highlighted the timing of the alleged demand but did not state that the election code itself formed the basis of the ACB action. The central allegation relates to the demand for money in connection with municipal work and file movement.
After taking Ombase into custody, the ACB team reportedly seized important documents and files from his office. Further legal action, including registration of a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act and arrest-related procedures, was under way at the time of publication. The report did not provide details of any court proceedings or the officer’s response to the allegations.
The incident places the focus on how contractors interact with municipal departments and how files connected to public works move through the civic administration. Any further action will depend on the formal case registration, the evidence collected by the ACB and the legal process that follows.
