Corruption rules the roost in the NSS programmes undertaken in various colleges under the Utkal University, alleged sources.
While money is gulped by showing the activities in records, little or nothing is done on ground. Starting from the college principals, programme officers to the NSS office staff members in the university are alleged to be in connivance with one another as a result of which the corrupt people get ample elbow room.
Notably, the NSS fund is released for various social works and to instill spirit of community service among the college students. Funds are released to the NSS units of the colleges for regular and special camps. The NSS units at the college level are headed by teachers who are helped by a few staff members. The teacher heading the unit is called the programme officer (PO).
In several colleges, thanks to lack of proper monitoring and nexus among the PO, Principal and some venal staff members of the Utkal University NSS department, the funds are mismanaged.
While in the interior and remote parts where inspection is virtually nil, the authorities manage to misappropriate funds without organising any camps at all. They use ghost volunteers and prepare fabricated records while the NSS Department of the university approves of it after getting their share.
In a few colleges, where the Principal and PO of the NSS wing are teamed up, the Principal never changes the PO even though there are rules pertaining to periodic change of the PO. While the authorities have not conducted the audits of many NSS wings of colleges, in several cases the POs manage to get their accounts audited through underhand deals and palm greasing even when there is serious lack of genuineness in the accounts.
A former PO requesting anonymity said, “The NSS programmes have merely become a matter of signboard while the ground reality is it is a means to embezzle Government money where a cross sections of employees are hand in glove.” He demanded proper monitoring of the NSS activities in various institutions, thorough and transparent audit of accounts and action against those who are creating muddy water for vested interest.