In scholarship program for students in Odisha, authorities suspect fraud, corruption

As part of the direct benefit transfer (DBT) program, the post-matric scholarship program (PMS) was implemented in Odisha, and the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has reason to believe that there was fraud and corruption involved.

The CAG stated in its report, which was presented to the state assembly on Tuesday, that ‘due to the absence of detailed checklist for inspection of private educational institutions, 5,185 beneficiaries of 15 ineligible institutions had been granted PMS, amounting to Rs 15.79 crore, during financial years 2016-17 to 2016-20.’

In its updated policies published in May 2018, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment made it mandatory for officers chosen by district collectors to investigate private educational establishments.

The CAG did point up that there was no provision for private educational institutions to be inspected or for PMS to be penalized.

The welfare extension officers (WEOs) and assistant district welfare officers (ADWOs) conducted joint physical inspections of 16 institutions affiliated with the National Council of Vocational Research and Training (NCVRT) and Bharat Sevak Samaj (BSS) in September and October 2021 in the presence of audit officials.

Eight of the 16 institutes that were checked during the joint verification were found to be nonexistent, and it was impossible to find out whether these institutes ever existed from the locals, according to the study.

‘The Prerana (PMS scheme portal) software was also not equipped properly to identify and filter out these ineligible institutes. As a result, PMS, amounting to Rs 15.79 crore, was appropriated by non-existing/ineligible institutes,’ it said.

The CAG found that the students had received the PMS even if they stopped their studies.

At the Mayurbhanj district’s Sakuntala Sudharsan Institute of Technology (SSIT), 1,369 students enrolled in three-year diploma programs from 2016 to 20.

The audit examined the semester grades for the 2016–19 and 2017–20 batches and found that 138 and 142 students, respectively, had dropped out of school after failing their final exams. They did receive PMS, totaling Rs 2.36 crore, nevertheless.