Lucknow: A major fraud has been uncovered in the Northern Railway zone after medals meant to honor employees were found to be made of copper instead of silver. The exposure has left the Railways embarrassed and has led to criminal action against the suppliers.
The scam surfaced at the General Store Depot in Alambagh, Lucknow, when officials raised doubts about the quality of medals delivered for upcoming award ceremonies. Samples were sent for testing on August 20 this year, and the laboratory report confirmed that the medals contained only 0.01 to 0.02 percent silver instead of the mandated 99.9 percent purity. The findings showed the medals were essentially copper-based, stripping them of their intended value and sheen.
Railway officials said a total of 853 medals had been ordered in 2023 from an Indore-based supplier, M/s Viable Diamonds. The consignment was cleared by a Mumbai-based inspection associate. However, the laboratory results revealed that the medals were counterfeit, raising serious questions about the credibility of the inspection process.
The fraudulent supply is estimated to be worth around ₹1.3 crore, with Alambagh depot alone receiving counterfeit medals valued between ₹30 and ₹40 lakh. An FIR has been lodged at Alambagh police station under Section 420 of the IPC against the Indore supplier as well as the Mumbai inspection firm for cheating and breach of trust. Senior officials said a police team will soon visit Indore to pursue the investigation and interrogate the suppliers.
Indian Railways procurement rules are designed to prevent such lapses, with strict specifications on quality, purity, and certification. Vendors must provide inspection certificates, and developmental orders for new suppliers are capped at 20 percent of procurements. Payments are only released after proper acceptance and certification of goods. In this case, while documents including the purchase order, inspection reports, and receipt notes were submitted, laboratory analysis exposed the fraud.
The faulty supply has been formally rejected, and all supporting documents have been attached to the complaint. Northern Railway’s vigilance wing has intensified inspections across its depots to ensure that similar frauds are not repeated. Officials said accountability would be fixed at every level and corrective measures taken to safeguard procurement and quality standards in the future.
This is not the first time Indian Railways has been hit by procurement scams. In the past, a high-profile case involving bottled water supplies was exposed by the CBI, where substandard and overpriced products were pushed into the system, causing losses worth crores. Such recurring scams highlight the vulnerabilities in the procurement process and the need for stronger monitoring mechanisms to prevent suppliers from exploiting loopholes.
A senior vigilance officer, requesting anonymity, said, “This incident has shaken confidence in the procurement system. It is a wake-up call for Railways to tighten inspections and strengthen checks at every stage, from vendor approval to final delivery. Without accountability, such frauds will keep surfacing.”
