Bihar to dismiss over 3,000 teachers over fake degrees, forged certificates

The Bihar government will dismiss more than 3,000 teachers accused of securing jobs using fake degrees and forged educational certificates, education minister Mithilesh Tiwary said on Friday, announcing one of the state’s biggest crackdowns on fraudulent appointments in the school system.

Tiwary said the action followed a detailed investigation by the state Vigilance Bureau into teacher recruitment carried out between 2006 and 2015. The probe, he said, uncovered large-scale irregularities involving forged academic documents and certificates issued by fake educational institutions.

Addressing reporters, the minister said the education department had been directed to initiate strict action against the teachers identified in the investigation. He added that once they were dismissed, disciplinary proceedings would also be launched against them.

Officials said several FIRs had already been registered on the basis of the vigilance report and the teachers concerned had been named as accused. The department also plans to recover salaries and honorariums paid to them during their service, along with interest.

According to officials, investigators found that some candidates had submitted certificates from non-existent colleges, while others had used forged academic qualifications to obtain teaching jobs in government schools.

The inquiry also found that a number of teachers resigned before disciplinary proceedings could be initiated. Officials said action would still be taken against them by the department.

Tiwary said the move reflected the government’s zero-tolerance approach towards corruption and noted that the vigilance inquiry had originally been ordered when Nitish Kumar was serving as chief minister.

The action is expected to affect appointments made over nearly a decade and could reopen scrutiny of recruitment processes in Bihar’s education system during that period.

With IANS inputs