Punjab Congress has claimed to unearth another scandal in the Punjab Government, that too in the Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s dream project of setting up Adarsh schools across the State.
Relying its claims on the information gathered under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, Punjab Congress on Tuesday alleged that the Adarsh schools have become a “means of fraud, misuse and scam of Government funds by private entrepreneurs”.
The party not only demanded to issue a white paper on the functioning of Adarsh Schools but also an inspection by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India. In addition, the party also demanded to initiate strict action and register criminal cases against those responsible for the same.
It also demanded that these schools be immediately taken over by the Government, and integrated into its own education system to save the future of thousands of students and teachers associated with them.
The allegations were made by PPCC spokesperson Sukhpal Singh Khaira and another party leader Inderjeet Singh Zira during a press conference that high misappropriation of funds is taking place in the schools of Ferozepur’s Hardasa and Moga’s Manawa as per RTI information.
“Malfunctioning and gross financial embezzlement in Punjab’s over two dozen Adarsh Schools have come to fore. A close perusal of two Adarsh schools of Hardasa and Manawan villages clearly expose the financial bungling by private players running these schools,” said Khaira.
He maintained that all private managements, other than five Adarsh Schools managed by the Bharti group, are embezzling Government funds.
Congress is of the firm opinion that Badal’s dream pet project “is only injuring the public exchequer and squandering tax payers’ money. Government should merge these Adarsh schools with its existing education system and improve infrastructure of approximately 19000 Government schools across State”.
Khaira alleged that despite all the irregularities, the Chief Minister has turned a blind eye because the chairman of the BIS society JS Dhaliwal is close to Badal senior.
In view of these serious irregularities, Punjab and Haryana High Court had, on July 7 this year, ordered the director general school education (DGSE) to inquire into all the allegations and submit a report within two months.