Misuse of public-funds and other irregularities by management of government-aided private schools in Delhi


SUBHASH CHANDRA AGRAWAL

(Guinness Record Holder & RTI Activist)

Presently there are few hundred government-aided private-schools in Delhi where 95-percent of total expenditure is borne by Delhi government, and the private bodies managing these schools contribute just 5-percent to keep hold on their (mis)management. Private managements of such schools employ their relations and family-members in schools as teachers and on other posts to grab public-money as salary shown to such persons. Such employed family-members like even daughters-in-law are at liberty to come just for a small part of total school-timing. Those employed as teachers are allotted only a few teaching classes as compared to other teachers who are penalized for being late even for a couple of minutes. Even at time of recruitment, family-members of management employed as teachers are given allotment-letters bearing a date earlier than those to other employed teachers so that these family-members may only get chance to be promoted as Vice Principal and Principal.

It is a commonly known fact that salary-cheques are given to employees (including teachers) in government-aided private-schools after taking cash in advance which ranges from 5-percent to 50-percent meaning thereby that private management does not practically spend even a single penny to keep hold on these schools. Domestic helps of private management are shown as school-employees. Electronic bank-transfer should replace bank-cheques as payment of salaries. Any take-back of salary-part in cash or otherwise should attract strict-most action including arrest of those forcing to do so.

Most government-aided private schools have become a source of income rather than philanthropy for private management running these schools. There should be a complete ban on employing family-members and relations as employees in these schools. Affidavits should be taken from management of such schools about family-members and relations presently employed in such schools. All presently employed family-members and relations should be transferred to other schools to eliminate chances of preferential treatment to them anymore. Bio-metric attendance-machines should be installed in all these schools. Every care should be taken that domestic-helps may not be shown as school-employees. Frequent transfers of non-teaching staff to other schools can check such misuse of public-funds.

Even thereafter private managements of such schools manage to overcome stricter regulations, then these should be completely taken over by government retaining just original name as gesture and memory of founders of such schools, but subsequently misused by their legal heirs.

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