Madhya Pradesh school education department tops list of offices flagged in Rs 648-crore payment probe

Madhya Pradesh's School Education Department has been identified as the department with the most offices flagged in a state-wide probe into alleged financial irregularities involving government payments, totalling Rs 648 crore. The State Financial Intelligence Cell (SFIC) investigated hundreds of crores in suspected irregular, suspicious, fraudulent, duplicate or excessive payments from 2023 to the present.

The probe discovered Rs 349 crore in irregular transfers and Rs 299 crore in suspicious, irregular, fraudulent, duplicate or excess payments. The department with the second-highest number of flagged offices was Revenue, followed by Tribal Affairs. The SFIC was established to analyze payment data and identify transactions that deviate from normal government processes, using the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS).

The investigation has resulted in the recovery and reversal of Rs 56 crore and Rs 164 crore in irregular transfers, respectively, bringing the total to around Rs 220 crore. At least 50 officials have been charged with possible criminal wrongdoing, and the government has implemented additional safeguards to prevent such issues in the future.