A senior forest official in Tripura has been relieved of his field posting following the arrest of a man carrying a large amount of cash at Agartala Railway Station, officials said on Friday.

According to an official order issued by R.K. Samal, IFS, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and HoFF, Government of Tripura, Gaurav Ravindra Wagh, IFS, who was serving as the South District Forest Officer, has been directed to report to the Forest Headquarters in Agartala until further instructions. 

His responsibilities as DFO South Tripura have been temporarily assigned to Kamal Bhowmik, TFS Grade-I, who is currently SDFO Sabroom, in an additional capacity. The order directs Wagh to join the headquarters by April 25, 2026, with immediate effect.

The action comes after Tripura Police detained a man identified as Rajendra Chintaman Kankachila at Agartala Railway Station on Thursday morning, allegedly recovering nearly ₹60 lakh in cash from his possession. He was later produced before a court and sent to police custody until April 29 for further questioning.

Sources in the intelligence wing stated that the accused was intercepted by Special Branch personnel and Government Railway Police while he was allegedly preparing to travel to Kolkata by train. Suspicion reportedly arose after he objected to the inspection of one of his bags, despite initially agreeing to checks.

Officials further indicated that a vehicle bearing the nameplate of the South Tripura DFO had arrived at the station around the same time, which added to the suspicion surrounding the incident. Investigators also said the arrested individual is believed to be related to the forest officer, though this connection is part of the ongoing inquiry.

Authorities have booked the accused under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, and investigations are continuing to determine the source of the cash and any possible links to government officials.