‘Tarunko Sapna’ of 44 Kalimpong Students Has a Rude Awakening

Yowan Mothay, EOI, Kalimpong, November 14, 2024 :  The ‘Tarunko Sapna’ initiative of the West Bengal Government, aimed at financially assisting students in purchasing tablets for academic use, has come under scrutiny following complaints from various districts that allocated funds have not reached eligible students.

Under this scheme, each student in grades 11 and 12 in government schools is entitled to a cash subsidy of Rs 10,000. However, a growing number of students have reported that the amount has not been deposited into their bank accounts. In the Darjeeling hills, too, students from several schools have claimed that funds intended for them have either not been transferred or have mistakenly been sent to other people’s accounts.

The Kalimpong district is among the affected areas, with 44 students from four schools reporting that the subsidy has not arrived in their accounts. Authorities have indicated that these funds might have been misplaced during the online transfer process.

According to verified reports, the affected students include 29 from Yuddhabir High School, three from Lava High School, 11 from Loley High School, and one from Pokhrebung High School. Though 6,386 students from 32 higher secondary schools in Kalimpong district have received the allocated funds, these anomalies in the fund transfer process have led to concerns within the school administrations, prompting them to file complaints with the local authorities.

Kalimpong District School Inspector Ravindranath Mandal confirmed the irregularity on Thursday, saying: “The concerned schools have provided us with a list of students who did not receive the funds. We are conducting a thorough investigation into the matter, but the details cannot be disclosed at this stage.”

This incident has raised broader concerns over the potential mishandling of funds under the ‘Tarunko Sapna’ scheme. Similar grievances from other districts have led to demands for a more rigorous audit of the scheme’s processes and for improved safeguards to ensure funds reach the intended recipients. Two schools in Siliguri have also reported similar issues, further intensifying calls for oversight.

School administrations and local authorities are now urging the West Bengal Government to improve the system for transferring these funds, ensuring they are credited directly and accurately to students' accounts.