Haryana government schools: CBI registers four more FIRs in fake enrolment case

The investigating agency has now launched a probe into FIRs previously lodged in Rohtak, Hisar, Faridabad and Gurgaon, against the unknown officers within the primary education department of Haryana

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered four additional FIRs in a fake enrolment case that revealed widespread irregularities in student admissions across Haryana.

In total, seven FIRs were registered by the Haryana state vigilance bureau in 2018. (iStock)

The investigating agency has now launched a probe into FIRs previously lodged in Rohtak, Hisar, Faridabad and Gurgaon, against the unknown officers within the primary education department of Haryana.

In total, seven FIRs were registered by the Haryana state vigilance bureau in 2018. The CBI had previously registered three FIRs – Ambala, Panchkula and Karnal in the same case.

It was uncovered that out of a reported 22 lakh student enrolments, approximately 4 lakh were fraudulent. This discrepancy has raised serious concerns as various schemes within the education department offered cash and in-kind benefits based on student numbers. This incentive structure inflated enrolment figures, allowing school principals and officials to access increased grants and misappropriate significant funds meant for student welfare, including the mid-day meal scheme.

The investigation into the Gurgaon FIR revealed that 10 government middle schools were audited. For the 2014-15 academic year, 5,298 students were enrolled, but only 4,232 appeared for final exams, resulting in 1,066 dropouts or absentees. In the 2015-16 academic year, out of 4,812 enrolled students, only 3,941 appeared for exams, with 871 classified as dropouts or absentees.

In the Faridabad FIR, the investigation identified 2,777 dropout/absentee cases for the 2014-15 academic year and 2,063 cases for the 2015-16 academic year.

The Hisar FIR covered districts, including Hisar, Sirsa, Fatehabad, and Bhiwani, uncovering 5,735 dropout/absentee cases. Verification of records from 30 schools in these districts revealed 393 cases in six schools of Hisar district. The investigation found no financial benefits for uniforms or mid-day meals issued in the names of these dropouts.

As per the FIR registered by the SVB, the names of students were shown to have been struck-off due to long absence, whereas there was a policy of non-striking of names. A random audit conducted by Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs) from the State Vigilance Bureau (SVB) across three ranges—Rohtak, Hisar, and Gurugram—uncovered startling differences in student numbers: Rohtak Range showed a discrepancy of 472 students across several schools, Hisar Range revealed a discrepancy of 581 students, and Gurugram Range exhibited a discrepancy of 589 students.