Patna: The Bihar government has launched investigations into 15 private colleges across six districts amid suspicions of large-scale misuse of funds under the Chief Minister’s flagship Bihar Student Credit Card scheme. The scheme, designed to provide education loans to students, has seen a surge in applications, prompting authorities to order physical verification of participating institutions.
In the first phase, colleges in Patna, Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, Madhubani, Rohtas, and Aurangabad will undergo inspections, with detailed reports expected within two weeks.
Naseem Ahmed, the officer overseeing the scheme, has written to District Education Officers highlighting the unprecedented rise in applications. While the target for the 2024–25 academic session was 85,000, 99,357 applications were received. For the current 2025–26 session, 115,423 applications have been submitted against a target of 95,220. Officials noted a sharp increase in admissions across institutions compared with previous years, raising concerns over potential misappropriation.
A committee led by the District Program Officer, Planning and Accounts, will conduct the investigation. Other members include the manager of the District Registration and Counselling Centre and the Assistant Manager of the Bihar State Finance Corporation.
Colleges under scrutiny in Patna include Magadh Professional Institute, Oxford College of Research and Management, Chaitanya College of Management and Technology, RS Vidyapeeth, ABC College of Education, Nova Management College, and Himalaya College of Professional Education, Paliganj. Inspections will also cover select institutions in the remaining districts.
Officials said the probe will examine affiliation documents, government permissions, curriculum, enrolment, and attendance records. Fee structures for the past two years will be audited, and facilities such as classrooms, libraries, laboratories, computer labs, and seminar halls will be geo-tagged and photographed. Teachers’ qualifications will be verified, and students will be interviewed directly to assess compliance.
“The department will ensure complete transparency and integrity in the implementation of this scheme,” the Education Department stated, underlining its commitment to safeguarding public funds.
