Allegations of large-scale irregularities have surfaced in the distribution of free school uniform funds in Arunachal Pradesh’s Lower Siang district, with social activist Ranya Doke claiming that money meant for government school students was transferred to fake beneficiaries.

According to documents accessed through the Right to Information (RTI) Act, funds under the state’s free school uniform scheme were allegedly disbursed to non-existent students through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), while several genuine students are still waiting to receive the assistance.

Under the scheme, students from Classes 1 to 9 are entitled to receive Rs 1,000 each for uniforms, while students from Classes 9 to 12 are eligible for Rs 2,500.

Doke alleged that irregularities were detected during scrutiny of records linked to the Public Financial Management System (PFMS), which was used for the transfer of funds. He claimed that payments were made in the names of “fake and bogus students”, resulting in the misuse of public money meant for economically weaker students studying in government schools.

He further alleged that the disbursements were carried out knowingly, leading to the “wrongful diversion and siphoning of public funds”.

The activist also claimed that despite submitting a written complaint to Education Commissioner Amjad Tak, the file recommending an inquiry was allegedly ignored and later went missing within the department.

Doke additionally questioned the utilisation of nearly Rs 40 lakh sanctioned for the uniform scheme, alleging that the department had failed to provide a proper utilisation certificate for the expenditure.

Efforts to seek a response from Marte Koyu reportedly did not yield any clarification on the matter.

Calling for immediate action, Doke urged authorities to investigate the alleged irregularities and prevent further misuse of welfare funds. He warned that if the matter remained unresolved, he would escalate the issue to the Chief Minister and the Central government.

Meanwhile, Tak acknowledged loopholes in the implementation of the DBT mechanism and admitted that discrepancies had emerged in the existing system. He said the government was working to strengthen direct transfers to actual student beneficiaries and minimise irregularities linked to manual distribution and procurement processes, which often lead to complaints regarding poor-quality materials.