Kalyan civic school withdraws cash transfers in kids’ names from bank

KALYAN: The education department of the Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) has initiated an inquiry into charges made by an NGO that a civic body-run school withdrew money deposited by the corporation in the accounts of 17 students under the state government’s direct benefit transfers scheme. The money was withdrawn without knowledge of the students’ parents, the NGO Solace India Online told the state government and KDMC chief Govind Bodke in its complaint.

Dr Rupinder Kaur, the NGO’s convener, said the state opens zero balance bank accounts in the name of students of state and civic-run schools so that they can get direct cash benefits. Once parents of these students have purchased school uniforms, raincoats and shoes, they need to submit bills to the school concerned. After the school submits the bills to the government, the state reimburses the money through the civic body by releasing it directly into the students’ bank accounts.
Kaur alleged that money thus transferred to accounts of 17 children from Savitribai Phule School in the Wadeghar area was withdrawn by the school from the Apna Sahakari Bank Ltd’s Kalyan branch. Both the school and the bank have denied any wrongdoing.
According to Kaur, the accounts were opened in the bank in 2017 and the first time money was deposited in students’ accounts was in January 2018. The amount deposited at that time was between Rs 2,300 and Rs 2,500 per student, she claimed. Neither the students, mostly tribals, nor their parents were informed, she added.
Parents too said that money had been withdrawn. Anjana Waghe, mother of Manisha Waghe, who is now in Class 8 in Abhinav School after having completed Class 7 at the Savitribhai Phule school, said, “When my daughter was studying at Savitribai school, she only got her school uniform. The bank account of my daughter showed that Rs2,379 was deposited on January 10, 2018. Later, on January 16, the money was withdrawn by the school without our knowledge.” A student, Poornima Waghe, 15, who has now moved to Abhinav School and is Class 9, said that she left Savitribai school in 2017, but money was shown as having been deposited in her name in 2018 and withdrawn as well, without her consent.
Archana Vipat, principal of Savitribai Phule school, denied the allegations. She told TOI, “The allegations are wrong. We have withdrawn the money in the presence of students by taking their signatures.”
Melvellie Gonsalves, officer of the Kalyan branch of Apna Sahakari Bank Ltd, said, “We have not issued any payment to students without their signatures. The allegations are wrong.”
KDMC education officer J Tadvi said, “We have initiated a probe and on the basis of its findings, further action will be taken in the matter.”