Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has filed a police complaint after a 4 TB hard disk containing data related to the civic body s property tax department allegedly went missing from a...
Pune: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has filed a police complaint after a 4 TB hard disk containing data related to the civic body’s property tax department allegedly went missing from a citizen facilitation centre. The action came after Congress leader Arvind Shinde raised the issue with the administration.
According to the civic officials, the hard disk was found missing from the e-seva centre on May 25. An employee working at the centre allegedly admitted to taking away the device. However, the civic administration did not immediately approach the police and instead initiated an internal inquiry into the matter.
The incident came to light after Shinde questioned civic officials about the missing hard disk. Following his intervention, the administration acknowledged the lapse and confirmed that an investigation had been launched.
“PMC found that a 4 TB hard disk is missing. The employee working at the centre has admitted that he took it. We have instructed the IT department to conduct an inquiry and ascertain what data may have been compromised,” a civic official said.
Shinde termed the incident serious, noting that the property tax department maintains records of citizens’ properties and contact details.
“In a matter involving sensitive public data, PMC should have immediately filed a police complaint. Instead, the administration remained silent,” he said.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the property tax department said the hard disk had been misplaced and that the IT department was conducting an inquiry. PMC also confirmed that a police complaint has now been lodged.
Meanwhile, the property tax department has filed another police complaint against individuals who allegedly submitted fake demand drafts worth ₹2.58 crore towards property tax payments.
Ravi Pawar, head, PMC property tax department, said, “We received fake demand drafts worth ₹2.58 crore. This appears to be a deliberate act, and we have filed a police complaint.”