The Karbi Students’ Association (KSA) Samson Teron faction has alleged that the concerned officials under the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) authority have siphoned money in the guise of supplying desks, benches, football, steel rack and skipping ropes to schools during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The allegation was made in a press statement by the KSA issued on Friday.
The statement alleged that supply of materials was sanctioned for an amount of INR 7, 99, 89,000. “Now, any layman can validate the fact that the supply of those materials in different schools never took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, when schools remained closed,” it read.
The KSA claimed they had carried out random surveys at various schools in West Karbi Anglong and found out that most of the schools denied receiving the materials but were recorded to have been received by them. They were made to sign the receipt of materials ‘under duress’.
“The so-called supply of materials 6853 pair desks and benches at INR 5.13 crore; 2691 nos. of steel racks at INR 1.74 crore hardly reached its destination if investigated properly. Also 2600 nos. of football at INR 52 lakh and 29500 nos. of skipping rope at INR 59 lakh most likely vanished in thin air,” the statement alleged.
“One must question the unnecessary supply of football and skipping rope at a whopping INR 1.11 crore when our Karbi students are staying as slaves for their studies in the plain districts. The money could have been utilised to fund their studies in Karbi Anglong. But these corrupt people are so selfish that they will build their homes at the cost of the future of the poor students and Karbi Anglong,” it added.
It further questioned KAAC, CEM Tuliram Ronghang over his silence on the issue.