Bhubaneswar, Aug. 24: Burglars struck at a government quarter, a stone’s throw from the Assembly, and decamped with valuables, including gold ornaments, worth Rs 4.2 lakh and $760 in foreign currency.

Though the area is bustling with protesters and policemen as the House is in session, the burglars dared to strike at a government quarter situated on the first lane of Unit-III, which runs parallel to M.G. Marg.

The goons looted the house of Srinibash Mishra, an assistant section officer in the fisheries department, of valuables and foreign currency. The jewellery and dollars had been kept in the house for the marriage of Mishra’s brother in December.

Mishra said that last evening around 8.40pm, he reached home from the secretariat and found the front gate of his house open.

“Though the main gate of the compound was locked, the front gate that leads into my house was open. I entered the house to find several articles lying scattered in the rooms and the almirahs were open. I immediately informed Kharavela Nagar police,” said Mishra. He said the burglars had possibly entered his house by scaling the boundary walls.

There was no one in the house when the goons raided as Mishra’s wife works in Baliguda and stays there with the kids. Though Mishra’s parents live with him, they were not present in the house when the crime took place. They are in Jajpur town for the Baladevjew puja.

He said the burglars took away gold ornaments worth Rs 4.2 lakh and other valuables. They also decamped with sarees and a digital camera.

“My younger brother, who stays in West Africa, will come home shortly as he is going to marry in December. He had sent $760, which were also stolen from the house,” Mishra said.

A team of Kharavela Nagar police visited the house at night, while forensic experts examined it this morning. The cops also took help of the dog squad for possible clues.

An official of Kharavela Nagar police station said they were questioning some known criminals of the area.

“We are probing the theft and have sent teams to various places to arrest the criminals,” the officer said.

Local residents, however, are worried that several criminal incidents occur in the area during evening hours. In January, goons had ransacked the government quarter of an IAS officer, Sangram Keshari Mishra, near Master Canteen Square on M.G. Road, despite the presence of police personnel and protesters camping there.