Appointment of 580 Ineligible Teachers and Non-Teaching Staff Likely to Be Terminated in Maharashtra; Will Salaries Be Recovered?

The Chief Minister has taken serious cognizance of a major scam involving the fraudulent appointment of teachers and non-teaching staff through fake school IDs, defrauding the government of crores of rupees. Five officers from the Nagpur division have been arrested in connection with the case. According to sources, an investigation has been launched into 580 such appointments in the division, and there is a strong possibility that these appointments will be cancelled. If any appointment is proven to be bogus, the salary amount drawn by the appointees will also be recovered.

Three-Office Chain Behind the Scam

The scam involved a collusion between three offices: the Deputy Director of Education’s Office, the Secondary Education Department Office, and the Pay Team Office. When a “setter” brought an appointment proposal, it required unanimous approval from officers in all three departments. Each officer reportedly received a share of the bribe, following which the fake appointment would be approved.

Bank Passbook Leak Exposes Fraud

Investigators are now examining salary deposit records in the bank accounts of the suspected bogus teachers. If someone was supposedly appointed ten years ago, but their salary deposits began only recently, it would automatically confirm the appointment as fraudulent.  Each individual allegedly paid between Rs 30 to Rs 40 lakh in cash for these fake secondary teacher appointments. The money was collected before the appointment and then distributed among the involved officials as per a pre-planned arrangement.

Recruitment Irregularities Suspected in Chandrapur

Chandrapur: Five people, including Ulhas Narad, Deputy Director of Education of the Nagpur division, were arrested for allegedly misusing government resources and appointing individuals as principals in a Bhandara district school using bogus documents, despite the candidates being ineligible.Both Deputy Director Narad and the current Bhandara Education Officer (Hon.) Sanjay Dorlikar previously served as Education Officers in the Chandrapur Zilla Parishad. As a result, suspicions have emerged about irregularities in teacher recruitment during their tenure. Sources suggest that further investigation may implicate others as well.