Education department suspends 18 employees in Kannad mass copy case

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The education department of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar zilla parishad on Monday suspended 18 employees in connection with the mass copy case on day one of the HSC examination at a centre in Kannad."Based on CCTV footage as well as official reports, it is clear that some teachers and other staffers on duty at the examination centre concerned violated the rules," education officer (secondary) Ashwini Lathkar said.All suspended employees belong to Rashtriya Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Kannad, where a flying squad, on Feb 10, saw glaring malpractices, with a section of staffers colluding with candidates. The education department has already suspended three ZP workers who were roped in for exam duty at the aforesaid school in Kannad.Besides sending suspension proposals of errant staffers, the education department has initiated criminal proceedings against them by registering an offence under the Maharashtra Prevention of Malpractices at University, Board and Other Specified Examination Act, 1982. The education department said it is mandatory to keep the CCTV system operational full-time at every examination centre in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district."It is essential to continuously record all the events that take place during the examination, and it will be the responsibility of the centre director to preserve the relevant footage safely. The relevant CCTV recording must be submitted to the education department without fail," Lathkar said.She added, "If there is any tampering, alteration, or attempt to do anything inappropriate in the CCTV footage, strict action will be taken against the people involved as per the rules. If necessary, criminal action will also be taken."