“We got information that such illegal activities were going on for some days, following which, we maintained a watch and caught truck driver Arjun Thakre and carting agent Mukesh Patil red-handed. We recovered about a ton of iron rods worth Rs 40,000 from the spot,” said Arvind Goyani, one of the councillors.

SMC official Pradeep Shah had lodged a complaint with the Kapodara Police Station against Patil and Thakre on Friday.

The alleged scamsters are being interrogated, police said.

According to sources, the three municipal councillors, Bhimji Butanwala, Arvind Goyani (Water Committee Chairman) and Praful Pansurya, received information that last week, the iron rods were unloaded from a truck at an open ground near Patidar wadi in Varachha. The rods were supplied from the Surat Municipal Corporation’s (SMC) central store at Maghob and were meant for delivery at Kosad.

They also learnt that such activity was going on for some days. Around 450 houses for the poor are being constructed by the SMC at Kosad, Butanwala said. After unearthing the scam, they visited the spot at Kosad and talked to the supervisor and found that the delivery of the iron rods was not sufficient from the central stores. One a single trip only 200 kilograms were delivered from the central store.