34 education dept officials to lose one year increment

Vadodara: Around 34 officials of Sarva Shikshan Abhiyaan (SSA) in Mahisagar who were involved in a mattress scam were penalized with a year’s increment. The scam had come to light in January 2016.
Following an internal probe of the department, the district primary education officer of Mahisagar ordered that benefits of one increment that would be cleared in June this year should not be given to them.

Sources said that the 34 officials most of whom are block resource coordinators, block resource persons, cluster resource coordinators and cluster resource persons were involved in irregularities in buying mattresses for primary schools in Mahisagar.

The state government had released a grant of Rs 1.1 crore for buying mattresses in 3,208 classrooms in in 1,222 schools of the district.

After the irregularities had surfaced, a probe was conducted by the deputy district development officer and the probe report was even submitted in September 2016.

Later, on receiving a report from the district development officer, the additional state project director in Gandhinagar had directed to take act against those involved in the irregularities.

Sources said that on the basis of the direction, the DPEO ordered that one increment should not be given.