Nagpur: One more corruption scam is thriving under the very nose of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. In the home district of the Chief Minister, a teacher is being paid all the benefits for his dishonesty rather easily. This dishonest teacher is being blessed by a local politician. Moreover, in this slanderous business, an Education Officer is playing her role, loyally. The teacher serves this Education Officer and in return, the Education Officer ensures salary from a school every month, legally. Who is this teacher who never teaches but still gets salary unfailingly? Who is this Education Officer who is ensuring salary to this dishonest teacher? Who is this politician who is showering his blessings on this dishonest teacher? All these disgusting facts are revealed by the Executive Editor of ‘Central Today’ (Sister concern of Nagpur Today) Pushpendra Falgun in his investigative report!
This teachers has never gone to a school nor his name is on record of a school register nor muster roll! There is neither any information regarding his appointment in the school nor any documents that can prove he is genuinely a teacher whose only duty is to teach students and make them good citizens for better future of the country. Irony is that this teacher is being paid a salary of around Rs 30,000 every month from Government coffers even though his name is neither on the record of muster roll nor any register of the school.
The name of this teacher is Yogesh Annaji Thakre. Yogesh Thakre is being paid salary every month from a school coming under Parshioni Tehsil. The salary is being paid allegedly under the pressure from the Education Officer. Since the last academic session i.e. July 2014, Yogesh is receiving salary but neither he has gone to the school from where is getting salary nor the school has received any joining or posting letter regarding Yogesh Thakre. Then why the school is giving salary to him?
This question might be a smaller one for Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis but for the people of the State, who love their Chief Minister because he is honest, the question is bigger one. Why the Chief Minister allowing this corruption under his nose?
The scam got exposed from Mahadula village:
Surprisingly, some ‘less educated’ people in Mahadula village exposed the corruption scam to the hilt. It so happened that the Teachers’ Committee of the village submitted an application to Parshioni Education Officer for starting a Class 8 in the ZP school in the village. The Class 8 was to be started from the next academic session. In reply to the application, the office of the Education Officer informed these villagers that a regular Class 8 is already functioning in the school since last year and a teacher has already been appointed to teach the class. The teacher’s name is Yogesh Annaji Thakre and this teacher is being paid a salary every month since the past one year. The villagers were taken aback by the information divulged by the office of the Parshioni Education Officer as they had neither heard the name of the teacher nor they had seen him teaching in the village school.
The shocked villagers returned to their school and through the Teachers’ Committee of the village scanned almost all documents of the school. They found that a salary of Rs 30,000 was being paid from the school in the name of Yogesh Thakre since July last year. But neither the teacher’s name was on muster roll record nor any documents concerning his appointment in the school.
What is the matter?
The case is that a teacher who is paid salary for imparting education to students was receiving the salary every month for not doing his duty. It means a teacher who never went to the school for once in the entire year was being paid a hefty salary every month. And surprisingly, the school students, teachers, parents, the Teachers’ Committee were in totally dark over this fact. However, the Headmaster of the school was well aware of the fact as the bill of teacher’s salary was being submitted in the office of the Tehsil’s Education Officer with his very own signature. This way, the teacher named Yogesh Thakre was paid salary to the tune of around Rs 3.50 lakh in the past one year and that too for doing nothing.
The root cause?
It is gathered that the so-called teacher Yogesh Thakre is being blessed by a local politician. Interestingly, even though the local politician hailed from Saoner, he held a clout in Parshioni Tehsil coming under Ramtek Assembly constituency. It is also gathered that those officials who refuse to toe the line of this local politician face the harsh music. It is alleged that the Education Officer named Kulkarni Madam also dances to the tune of this local politician and issues orders on his directions. In fact, Yogesh Thakre was to be appointed as teacher in a ZP middle school in Mahadula on the diktat of this local politician but due to some technical difficulties it could not be possible. Not to be outdone, the local politician ‘ordered’ Kulkarni Madam to ensure Yogesh Thakre is paid salary by hook or crook. Following the diktat, Kulkarni Madam passed oral orders to the Headmaster of Mahadula ZP school in this regard. This way, the scam started thriving since the past one year. The ‘Central Today’ is in possession of those salary challans through which Yogesh Thakre was paid his salary. ‘Central Today’ is also in possession of the muster roll of the school in which names of only four teachers are on record. The record does not show the name of Yogesh Thakre nor the school has any documents showing Yogesh Thakre as a teacher.
Who is Yogesh?
According to sources, Yogesh Thakre is resident of Patansaongi. A member of farmer family, Yogesh’s father had very close relations with this local politician. Due to this proximity, Yogesh could grab the teacher’s job. However, Yogesh, till to date, has never carried the responsibility of a teacher honestly and dedicatedly. Because of this sole reason, Yogesh Thakre is shifted from one school to other helplessly by the Education Officer following a flood of complaints from the concerned Headmasters. Sources further revealed that the last appointment of Yogesh Thakre was in a Mauda Tehsil school and that he has filed a petition in the court for cancelling that appointment. Now the question here is: When Yogesh Thakre has filed a petition in the court for cancellation of his Mauda appointment then on what authority he is drawing monthly salary from a school in Parshioni Tehsil?
Role of Education Officer:
In this entire sordid episode, the role of Education Officer Kulkarni is under the shadow of suspicion. On what basis and authority she has requisitioned the salary challans of Yogesh Thakre from the Headmaster of Mahadula ZP middle school every month to her office? What benefits she is drawing from this act of her? Is this act for her benefits or under pressure from anybody? How can she buckle under pressure while holding a constitutional post? The role of Headmaster of Mahadula school has also come under the clouds.
Independent probe needed:
The entire matter should be investigated independently on urgent basis. The guilty should not be spared of stern action so that no teacher would dare to indulge in such blatant corrupt practices in future. The salaries paid to Yogesh Thakre till date should be recovered along with fines and interests. If found guilty, Yogseh Thakre should be permanently relieved from the post of teacher. The Education Officer should also be dealt with sternly. The local politician should also be held accountable and the MLA from Ramtek Assembly seat Mallikarjun Reddy must take cognizance of the matter and initiate steps for a high-level enquiry into the sordid episode.
