Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: A large-scale education scam involving the fraudulent withdrawal of over Rs 6.5 crore in govt aid, under the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Swayam Yojana, was unearthed in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. An FIR was registered against several college principals, clerks, agents, and others for allegedly uploading fake student records to the govt portal to siphon off funds over a three-year period.The scam came to light following an inquiry conducted by S R Pedhekar, the assistant commissioner of tribal development, Amravati. The inquiry’s findings were submitted in a report to the department. Based on this, Chetna Daulat More, the project officer of the Integrated tribal development project, lodged a formal complaint with the Pundaliknagar police, and an FIR was registered late on Tuesday.As per the complaint, 1,416 fake students were shown as admitted to various colleges, and bogus documents were created to establish their eligibility. These fabricated records were uploaded to the Swayam Yojana portal for the academic years 2022–23, 2023–24, and 2024–25, allowing the accused to fraudulently claim a total of Rs 6,53,16,050 in govt aid.According to investigators, the colleges, in alleged connivance with middlemen and some officials from the tribal development project office, prepared and submitted fraudulent documents despite knowing the students were non-existent. The documents were then used to show fake admissions and secure financial benefits from the govt.Police said the FIR names college principals, clerical staff, agents, and other associated individuals, but no arrests have been made so far. The charges invoked include cheating, forgery, criminal conspiracy, and misuse of govt digital systems, along with provisions of the Information Technology Act. Authorities have stated that a detailed investigation is underway to determine the full scope of the scam and identify any additional beneficiaries involved in the fraudulent scheme.
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