The Srijan money-go-round: A scam hidden in plain sight

At Rs 1,000 crore, and counting, the enormity of the Srijan scam is still to fully reveal itself

It was late in the evening on August 8. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his entourage of officials had just concluded a series of review meetings of various departments. As  Chanchal Kumar, the principal secretary to the chief minister,  was finalising the agenda for the next day, he received a call from Bhagalpur District Magistrate Adesh Titarmare. Titarmare sounded calm, but the anxiety beneath his voice was palpable. The official told his senior that there were some discrepancies in the bank accounts of the district treasury, and that funds meant for development might have been diverted. 

Chief Minister Kumar,