Rs 1.15 crore cash in Rs 500, Rs 1000 notes stolen from Odisha bank locker

At least Rs 1.15 crore worth of cash in now defunct Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes was stolen from the Odisha Gramya Bank's branch in Dhenkanal, police said on 21 November.

The incident came to light today when the bank officials opened the bank after the two-day weekend holiday, Abhinav Dalua, inspector in-charge of Dhenkanal Town Police Station said.

Of the about Rs. 8 crore in old currency notes in the bank Rs 1.15 crore is missing from an iron box, he said.

The missing currency was in banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, Dhenkanal SP Basant Kumar Panigrahi said, before adding "We are examining the CCTV footage".

"We strongly suspect the involvement of some insiders. We are surprised to find that nearly Rs 7 crore was still intact in the strong room. All the cash had been stashed in three huge boxes," he said.

The branch is located a stone's throw away from the Dhenkanal Town police station.

Police have formed special teams to apprehend the robbers.

--PTI