Odisha SI recruitment scam: Company blacklisted by govt got clean chit from crime branch
Bhubaneswar: Silicon Techlab Pvt Ltd , a company recently blacklisted by the state govt over alleged irregularities in the SI recruitment examination, had earlier received a clean chit from the crime branch with regard to the company’s “integrity and credibility”, according to an official letter accessed by TOI.
Silicon Techlab, whose director Suresh Nayak is now in judicial custody, was engaged by central PSU ITI Limited , with whom Odisha police signed an MoU for the overall conduct of the SI exam.
The recently filed CBI chargesheet revealed that Silicon, tasked with preparing question papers, allegedly swapped them during printing at a Kolkata press. The recruitment exam, scheduled for Oct 5 and 6, 2025, was cancelled on Sept 30 following allegations of a leak.
As per documents, ITI had sought the approval of Odisha Police Recruitment Board (OPRB) to engage Silicon as its third-party vendor to prepare and print the question papers. On July 31, 2025, OPRB wrote to the crime branch requesting a thorough background and integrity check of the company.
On Aug 4, DSP Diptimayee Mallick submitted her inquiry report, finding no adverse remarks against the company. The next day, Silicon was formally appointed as vendor for the SI recruitment exam.
The crime branch’s verification report described Silicon as a provider of enterprise-grade IT services to multiple govt departments across the country. The company previously worked with Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh and Delhi govts as well as several central departments like education, healthcare, labour, energy, agriculture and tourism. It was also actively involved in conducting competitive examinations — both OMR and CBT — for govt and private organisations nationwide.
The SI recruitment scam came to light on Sept 30 last year when Berhampur police arrested 117 people, including candidates and middlemen. The crime branch later took over the probe and arrested Nayak on Nov 3.
“The crime branch should have conducted a more rigorous verification of the company, which handled recruitment processes for govt and private agencies since 2018. After the company’s role in the SI scam came to light, all its previous engagements must come under CBI scrutiny,” said retired police officer P K Swain.
The crime branch stood by its report. “When we conducted the background verification, we did not come across any wrongdoing. No criminal case was previously registered against the company. We arrested the company’s director when we found evidence,” a crime branch officer said.
On Dec 3, 2025, state govt cancelled Silicon’s empanelment. On Dec 23, the Orissa high court blacklisted the company for five years over alleged irregularities in the recruitment of assistant section officers for the HC in July 2025.
Silicon Techlab, whose director Suresh Nayak is now in judicial custody, was engaged by central PSU ITI Limited , with whom Odisha police signed an MoU for the overall conduct of the SI exam.
The recently filed CBI chargesheet revealed that Silicon, tasked with preparing question papers, allegedly swapped them during printing at a Kolkata press. The recruitment exam, scheduled for Oct 5 and 6, 2025, was cancelled on Sept 30 following allegations of a leak.
As per documents, ITI had sought the approval of Odisha Police Recruitment Board (OPRB) to engage Silicon as its third-party vendor to prepare and print the question papers. On July 31, 2025, OPRB wrote to the crime branch requesting a thorough background and integrity check of the company.
On Aug 4, DSP Diptimayee Mallick submitted her inquiry report, finding no adverse remarks against the company. The next day, Silicon was formally appointed as vendor for the SI recruitment exam.
The crime branch’s verification report described Silicon as a provider of enterprise-grade IT services to multiple govt departments across the country. The company previously worked with Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, Arunachal Pradesh and Delhi govts as well as several central departments like education, healthcare, labour, energy, agriculture and tourism. It was also actively involved in conducting competitive examinations — both OMR and CBT — for govt and private organisations nationwide.
The SI recruitment scam came to light on Sept 30 last year when Berhampur police arrested 117 people, including candidates and middlemen. The crime branch later took over the probe and arrested Nayak on Nov 3.
“The crime branch should have conducted a more rigorous verification of the company, which handled recruitment processes for govt and private agencies since 2018. After the company’s role in the SI scam came to light, all its previous engagements must come under CBI scrutiny,” said retired police officer P K Swain.
The crime branch stood by its report. “When we conducted the background verification, we did not come across any wrongdoing. No criminal case was previously registered against the company. We arrested the company’s director when we found evidence,” a crime branch officer said.
On Dec 3, 2025, state govt cancelled Silicon’s empanelment. On Dec 23, the Orissa high court blacklisted the company for five years over alleged irregularities in the recruitment of assistant section officers for the HC in July 2025.
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