Chandigarh, July 7
Taking cognizance of media reports regarding the multi-crore Punjab Education Scam, the office of the Auditor-General, Punjab has directed the Punjab Education Department to deposit the huge sums of money lying in its various bank accounts, into the State Treasury and also get a special audit done.

Crores of rupees are lying in accounts of the Punjab State Council of Research Education and Training (SCERT). Initial estimates of the Punjab Government put the figure at Rs 6 crore.

This amount should have been deposited in the treasury at the first instance, says the AG, while asking that the money should be deposited immediately.

Each year Rs 70 is collected from each of 4.70 lakh children taking Class V examination in the state. The money — about Rs 3.30 crore — is deposited in bank accounts of the SCERT. The practice has been going on for the past 10 years. In the past, crores of rupees from these accounts were forwarded as advance to various functionaries without any bills or receipts of expenditure.

Also fake entries and wrong cheques were allegedly issued to siphon out the money from these accounts, an inquiry report of the Education Department has revealed. Under the name secret funds payments were being made for petrol and other such expenses, the report said. The same was first reported in The Tribune, about 10 days ago.

The AG has now said that whatever is left in the banks should be deposited in the Treasury. Shockingly the AG had written a letter about five months ago demanding an audit into the funds of the SCERT which was stonewalled.

Meanwhile the Punjab Government, reacting to reports in the newspaper, took action and asked the Punjab Vigilance Bureau to register a case against the people who were involved in this huge bungling.

Sources in the government said the DIG, Vigilance, who has been entrusted with the case, has been given a free hand and will have the freedom to question anyone related to the scam. Specific orders have been issued in this regard as prima facie this is a major scam, said a top functionary of the government.

A team of the Vigilance has already started its work to screen the records. It will have experts on board from the auditing and accounting wings to aid them through one of the biggest swindling of public money the state may have seen.

The Principal Secretary, Education, Mr Sarvesh Kaushal, admitted receiving the AG’s letter and said we are going to correct the aberrations in the system and due procedures will be followed.

Meanwhile sources said the inquiry team of the Education Department had started the second phase of the audit. This will cover the 17 bank accounts which the SCERT had opened at the level of the District Education Officers across the state. These accounts were frozen on June 28 vide an order of the government.

Already the inquiry report of the department had slammed the SCERT for its slackness. The siphoning of public money had been taking place in the past 10 years or so and no record existed of the spending.