A surprising discovery during the ongoing eviction drive in Salia Sahi, Bhubaneswar, has raised serious concerns among officials and residents. On Tuesday, authorities recovered hundreds of Aadhaar cards from a single house, prompting immediate questions about how these sensitive documents ended up in one location.
Officials are now working to verify whether the Aadhaar cards are genuine or forged. The large collection has raised suspicion of potential misuse, leading to demands for a detailed and transparent investigation.
A resident claimed that many people had submitted their Aadhaar cards in hopes of receiving rehabilitation benefits after the demolition. Another local offered a contrasting explanation, stating that the house was acting as a collection centre for issued Aadhaar cards. According to this account, the documents were delivered through postal services, and people visited the spot to collect their IDs. The resident added that the appointed distributor had left the cards there for pickup.
In addition to Aadhaar cards, officials also recovered bank passbooks and cheque books from the same location. This has intensified concerns around the handling and security of sensitive personal information, especially in an area already experiencing tension over the ongoing ring road development project.
Meanwhile, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) continued clearing encroachments to construct the proposed 13-kilometre left parallel road from Ekamra Kanana to Andharua. Of the total stretch, around 900 metres pass through Salia Sahi. Nearly 200 metres have already been cleared, and demolition work is ongoing in the remaining sections.
