A flagship studentwelfare scheme in Delhi, aimed at supporting underprivileged students, has come under serious scrutiny after investigators uncovered large-scale irregularities in its implementation. The Anti-Corruption Branch revealed that the Jai Bhim Mukhyamantri Pratibha Vikas Yojana, designed to provide free coaching and financial support to thousands of students, now appears to have significant discrepancies in beneficiary records, fund disbursal mechanisms and institutional compliance, raising questions about how such lapses went undetected for years.
The probe into the scheme revealed that its rapid expansion may have opened the door to exploitation. “Rolled out in 2017 with 8 empanelled institutes catering to around 5,000 students, was expanded in 2019 to cover nearly 22,000 beneficiaries”. However, this scale-up was allegedly accompanied by fake admissions, duplicate entries and forged documentation, with nearly 1,000 beneficiaries suspected to be non-existent.
According to investigators, coaching fees and stipends were released directly to empanelled institutes, but financial safeguards were routinely bypassed. Funds were routed through common operational bank accounts instead of mandatory dedicated accounts, weakening oversight and accountability.
In several cases, stipends meant for students were not disbursed at all. The ACB has found suspicious disbursal under probe: Rs 37.20 crore, while the estimated total scam, as alleged, is around Rs 145 crore.
Governance lapses further compounded the issue. “no proper tendering process followed for empanelment, limited scrutiny of institutes”, and the Department of Education was reportedly kept out of the verification process. “The absence of Aadhaar linkage and minimal physical inspections allowed irregularities to go unchecked”.
On the ground, violations were equally serious. Institutes lacking basic infrastructure were allowed to enrol students, while many beneficiaries were diverted to smaller local tuition centres even as payments were claimed under the names of larger coaching brands.
The Anti-Corruption Branch said several institutes released stipends only after the FIR was registered.
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Priyank Tripathi is a Special Correspondent with over 16 years of experience in Journalism. The author covers agencies and furthermore reports from th...View More
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