Govt school heads still struggling to pay vendors

Archit Watts

Muktsar, July 13

Heads of government schools are struggling financially because they are unable to pay vendors for the materials purchased to carry out development projects in the previous fiscal year.

New funds yet to come

The grants for new rooms have come, but those lapsed in the previous financial year are expected to come in about a fortnight. Kapil Kumar Sharma, Deputy District Education Officer, Sri Muktsar Sahib

Some government school administrators told The Tribune that they had even issued Print Payment Advice (PPA) under the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) in March last year, but the transactions were not completed, and the funds ‘lapsed prematurely’.

“Now, we”re either paying the vendors out of our own pockets or waiting for the funds to arrive to clear the dues. The situation has become irksome as vendors now ask us to pay on a daily basis. However, department officers have not provided us with a satisfactory response,” said Keemat Charaya and Harry Bathla, head teachers at two government schools and Elementary Teacher Union activists.

Pawan Kumar, a Democratic Teachers Front activist, stated that the problem began in mid-February, when they were instructed not to issue new PPAs. “We were unable to issue the PPAs during the last week of March. It”s been nearly three and a half months, but we still can”t pay our vendors. We”ve even met with the department”s senior officers and delivered a memo to the Finance Minister,” he added.

A government teacher said that each block was yet to clear dues amounting to Rs 70-80 lakh. In Sri Muktsar Sahib district, there are six blocks, Muktsar I, II, Gidderbaha I, II, Malout and Lambi. “A vendor who supplied construction material in some schools is yet to get his Rs 12 lakh. He makes calls us daily and we are unable to explain our position to him,” the teacher said. He added that the PFMS was launched about two years ago so that the school heads need not sign cheques.

On this, Kapil Kumar Sharma, Deputy District Education Officer, Sri Muktsar Sahib, said, “The grants for new rooms have come, but those lapsed in the previous financial year are expected to come in about a fortnight.”