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| Govt avoids probe in misappropriation of funds | | 'Funds released to private institutions went down the drain' | | Ishtiyaq Ahmad
Early Times Report
Srinagar, Oct 13: As Comptroller and Auditor General of India has pinpointed certain irregularities and misappropriation of accounts in the funds released to certain select schools by the previous government, the present government has so far failed to order inquiry to bring justice to the case.
As per the CAG report, the then National Conference led government diverted Rs 1.73 crore special plan assistance from Centre for state-run schools to three private educational institutions in Kashmir and Ladakh regions resulting in mis-utilisation of funds."The payment of unjustified cash assistance to (three) private schools from out of special plan assistance from Government of India for improvement and up gradation of infrastructure in government schools resulted in misutilisation of Rs 1.73 crores," Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has revealed.
The report has said that Rs one crore was disbursed to Tyndale Biscoe School Tangmarg (Baramulla district), Rs ten lakh to Good Shepherd School Pulwama and Rs 63 lakh to Islamia Public School Leh.
As per the audit, Tyndale Bisco School apart from getting assistance of Rs one crore on July 2011 in FDRs, the school had also raised an insurance claim of Rs 1.29 crores on March 2012, it said.
The CAG report said that the school was also provided 25 pre-fabricated huts under disaster management programme of the state and school continue to be housed in these huts as on November 2013.
Good Shepherd School was paid cash assistance of Rs ten lakh without carrying proper survey of damage, it said, adding that the school was shifted to another place after the disturbance and had not returned to its old location.
In respect of the third beneficiary, Islamia Public School Leh, the CAG report said it was seen that the area in which school falls was free from any turmoil.
The CAG report said the payment of grant of aid was in contravention to the statement of Joint Director Planning of School Education Department and stated that grant was paid to these schools due to heavy damage to them during turmoil.
The CAG further said that there was nothing on record to suggest that a representative of the government had monitored proper utilisation of funds on the construction of school buildings by respective school managements.
Thus, the payment of assistance meant for the government schools was given to private schools and subsequently non-monitoring of utilisation thereof resulted in misutilisation of Rs 1.73 crores and undue benefit to the receipents of private schools.
Sources said that under an approved scheme the NC government had released funds to these schools but were reported to have been siphoned away by misappropriation of accounts.
Sources said that the officers and the private institutions for such act of omission and commission are enjoying and have gone escort free.
Sources said that the education minister and MoS education had assured media that a through probe shall be conducted, responsibilities fix and the persons involved shall accordingly be brought to book. However sources said that till date no such probe has been ordered by the government. Officials in the education department said that the government should order an immediate probe to find out what prompted the previous government to divert the funds to the well-off private schools when it's own schools were in dire need of the assistance. |
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