FUNDS TO BOGUS MADARSAS TO BE PROBED: MINISTER

LUCKNOW: The UP government has decided to order a high level probe into misuse of ₹100 crore annually in funding ‘fake’ ‘madarsas’ and mini ITIs. The money, according to minority welfare minister Laxmi Narain Chowdhary, was being spent on bogus ‘madarsas’ and ITIs and the scam was detected after registration of these institutions was made mandatory by the Adityanath government to bring transparency in their functioning.

LUCKNOW: The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to order a high level probe into misuse of ₹100 crore annually in funding ‘fake’ ‘madarsas’ and mini ITIs.

The money, according to minority welfare minister Laxmi Narain Chowdhary, was being spent on bogus ‘madarsas’ and ITIs and the scam was detected after registration of these institutions was made mandatory by the Adityanath government to bring transparency in their functioning.

“This money was being spent to fund 20 fake mini ITIs and around 2,000 bogus ‘madarsas’ in the state for past several years,” said Chowdhary on Friday.

The minister said officials who had connived with the owners of these so-called ‘madarsas’ would be brought to book. “I am out of station now and would return to Lucknow on Monday after which a probe panel would be set up,” he said.

Chowdhary said his government had given ample time to these institutions to register themselves and extended the registration deadline several times. “However 2000 existing ‘madarsas’ and 20 mini ITIs did not register themselves, which makes it clear they existed merely on paper and were fake,” he added.

According to statistics available with the UP Madrasa Board, the state had 19,213 recognised madarsas and 140 mini ITIs. But only 17,000 madarsas and 120 ITIs submitted their documents when the government made their registration mandatory.

Chowdhary said the purpose of the online registration drive was to streamline madarsa education system and bring them at par with other educational institutions and also to ensure there was no exploitation of teachers and staff.

“With the online system in place, scholarships and other benefits would be directly transferred into the account of the beneficiaries/students,” he said.

He said the state government was also mulling to frame a law to keep a tab on the appointment and removal of madrasa teachers.