Pune: 49 Principals of Government Polytechnics Ordered to Return Illegally Collected Funds
Pune, 30th March 2023: The Directorate of Technical Education (DTE) has demanded that 49 principals of government polytechnics in Pune pay back the money they had illegally collected as a second shift salary since 2013. The amount that is expected to be recovered is around Rs 10 crore.
The illegality came to light after activists filed petitions with the Lokayukta and the court, stating that the principals were using illegal ways to gain from the system, in violation of the DTE’s circular issued that year. The DTE director has cancelled the circular of 2013 and ordered the recovery of Rs 2.98 crore in the first phase. The inquiry found all 49 principals guilty of this offense, and the further process is underway.
The recovered money will be deposited in the government treasury. A complaint was filed under Section 409 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the court of First Class Magistrate, Pune, by Dr. Abhishek Haridas and Abhijit Khedkar while Ulhas Agnihotri lodged a complaint with the Lokayukta, bringing attention to this misappropriation.
The secondary remuneration received by the principals and the director’s circular of 2013 was found to be illegal by Dr Vinod Mohitkar’s committee in the inquiry report.
Dhanpal Kamble, Deputy Director of the Directorate of Technical Education, stated that they had demanded that all six divisional joint directors submit the second shift salary details of all government polytechnic principals, and the data was sent to the Director of DTE for further processing. The authorities are expected to take appropriate action as per the state government and DTE orders, and the recovery process has already begun.
