Petition seeks verification of certificates of teachers who got B.Ed degrees from outside Odisha

Bhubaneswar: An RTI activist has urged the Odisha government to verify the educational certificates of school teachers who had received the B.Ed degrees from outside the state.

RTI activist Samarjit Mohanty has submitted a petition in this regard to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, School and Mass Education Minister Sudam Marndi and other senior officials of the department, sources said.

Mohanty submitted the petition amid reports that the district administration in Ganjam has identified as many as 300 teachers who had received B.Ed degrees from outside Odisha. Most of these teachers have secured the degrees from neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, sources added.

It is learnt that the authorities have identified at least 61 teachers with B.Ed certificates from outside Odisha in Sankhemundi block, 47 in Buguda block, 43 in Digapahandi block, 39 in Dharakote block, 30 in Rangeilunda block, 21 in Sorada block, 19 each in Kukudakhandi and Belguntha block, 14 in Hinjilicut block and seven in Khalikote block in Ganjam district.

“The authorities in Ganjam district had earlier identified a few teachers who submitted fake educational certificates to get jobs. The Berhampur police had also caught a teacher for his alleged involvement in the fake certificate racket,” said the petitioner while urging the state government to verify the educational certificates of teachers who had received B.Ed degrees from outside Odisha.