A senior Uttar Pradesh minister found himself embroiled in a controversy when it was found that a college managed by him allegedly showed ‘non-existent’ teachers on its rolls in a bid to get recognition from the university.
Haibara Degree College, situated in Samajwadi Party (SP) supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav’s home district of Etawah, about 260 kilometres from here and offers Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education, has teachers on its rolls, who had either left the college long back or never joined the college.
Mulayam’s younger brother and public works department minister Shivpal Singh Yadav is the manager of the college.
According to officials of Kanpur based Chatrapati Sahuji Maharaj University with which the college is affiliated, the college had provided the varsity the names of three teachers, who were qualified and eligible as per the norms.
“During a check, it was found that none of them were teaching at the college,” an official of the varsity said.
Officials said there were several other colleges also, which had furnished names of fake teachers to get varsity recognition.
They said the fraud came to light when the varsity conducted a check at many such colleges. “The teachers, whose names had been given, had either retired or had left and teaching elsewhere. Their names are continuing at the colleges simply because their recognition will be cancelled if the varsity comes to know about it,” the officials pointed out.
According to rules, a college offering the Bachelor’s degree in Physical Education and with a sanctioned intake of 50 students can be given recognition only if it has at least one professor, one reader and five lecturers.
All of them must be regular staff members and be paid according to rules.
“Colleges furnish names even though they may not be teaching there. Instead they employ part time and less qualified teachers at meagre salaries,” varsity officials said.
The officials also added that a report has been submitted to the varsity administration and action is awaited.
The report is certain to cause embarrassment to the SP government.
Shivpal had earlier also embarrassed the government when he had openly advocated graft.
Yadav, at a meeting of the PWD officials, had said they could ‘steal a little if they work hard’.
