CHENNAI: The Director of Elementary Education has suspended the headmistress of a Panchayat Union Primary School in Pammadhukulam near Villivakkam in Tiruvallur district for allegedly inflating the student enrolment figures. Sources said the state government incurred significant monetary loss as the inflated enrollment figure led to the wrong fixation of student-teacher ratio.
The Block Educational Officer (BEO) of Villivakkam block has also been suspended for failing to monitor and inspect the functioning of the school. Officials said that on a particular day, the HM reported 432 out of a total of 566 students attended the school. However, upon inspection, it was found that only 219 children attended the school on that day.
Sources added that the headmistress allegedly inflated the student count in order to retain a high number of teaching staff at the primary school. As per the real enrolment figure, the school should have had eight teachers, but as many as 16 teachers are employed at the school.