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Pimpri-Chinchwad: The Pune unit of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has arrested Pramod Sudhakar Ombhase, Chief Engineer of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation’s (PCMC) Water Supply Department, for allegedly demanding a ₹19,000 bribe to clear agreements for civic works worth around ₹38 lakh.
Ombhase, 57, was taken into custody at 3pm on Thursday. A case has been registered against him under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act at Sant Tukaram Nagar Police Station in Pimpri-Chinchwad.
According to the ACB, the case relates to five tenders worth a total of ₹91.57 lakh awarded to a contractor for pipeline maintenance, repairs and the laying of new pipelines. The contractor needed the signatures of senior civic officials on the agreements to receive work orders.
The complainant had submitted the agreement documents, signed by the contractor’s companies, to the civic body for the signatures of Superintending Engineer Ajay Suryawanshi and Chief Engineer Ombhase.
Suryawanshi allegedly demanded a bribe of ₹45,785, equivalent to 0.5% of the total tender value, to sign the agreements. When the complainant said they would look into the demand after the work was completed, Suryawanshi signed three of the five tender files and forwarded them to Ombhase, according to the complaint.
The complainant met Ombhase on May 29, 2026, after the files had remained pending for a long time. Ombhase allegedly demanded ₹45,785 to sign the agreements for all five tenders.
The complainant approached the ACB on June 11. During verification that day, the ACB confirmed an alleged demand of ₹19,000, calculated at 0.5% of the approximately ₹38 lakh worth of work covered by the three files on Ombhase’s table.
The ACB also stated that Ombhase had admitted to previously accepting a bribe from the complainant.
Following the investigation, a case was registered against Ombhase on October 29 under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The ACB’s Pune unit conducted the operation under the supervision of its senior officers.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Nita Misal led the trap team, which included Police Head Constable Chandrakant Jadhav, Police Constable Kailas Mahamulkar and Police Constable Chandrakant Kadam.
The allegations against Ombhase remain subject to investigation. The ACB has appealed to citizens to report public servants who demand bribes through its official complaint channels.
