Even as the State Government claims to have provided all support to students to pursue higher education, an allegation of misappropriation of over Rs50 crore in disbursement of scholarships to meritorious students in last five years has stunned many.

What is more shocking is that officials of banks, Government treasury, police, Crime Branch and Higher Education Department and computer agency staffs are allegedly involved in the irregularities.

The irregularities in distribution of scholarships under the State Government’s Medhabruti Scholarships to general, technical and professional degree students have come to fore with one Ramesh Chandra Sahu lodging a formal complaint with every authority concerned starting from police to the Chief Minister.

Rights activist Pradip Pradhan along with complainant Ramesh Sahu on Thursday held a Press conference here alleging that though the Higher Education Department has written to the Crime Branch for a probe in this regard nothing tangible has happened as yet.

“At Durgaprasad village under Begunia block in Khordha district, a person took the bank ATM and pin numbers of three students citing that they would get scholarship on January 14 last year. On the very following day, Rs20,000 each was deposited in the bank accounts of the three students against the Government-prescribed Rs10,000,” alleged Pradhan.

He wondered how the three students who were not at all meritorious got the scholarships and how an outsider managed to get the amount.

The Higher Education Department provides Rs10,000 every year to each engineering and professional degree student and PG Merit students, Rs12,000 to Special Girl Merit, Rs5,000 to senior Merit and Rs3,000 to junior merit students who qualifies for Medhabruti Scholarship. Pradhan demanded a CBI probe into the entire episode to unearth the truth.