3 weeks ago
TGBIE Officials Accused of Facilitating Fake Fire NOCs for Colleges
Colleges need special safety papers called fire No Objection Certificates, or NOCs, to show they are safe places for students.
Some colleges used fake NOCs to get approval from the education board.
The board then fined those colleges for using fake papers.
Now people are saying that workers at the education board may have helped colleges get the fake certificates.
Most of the fake papers seem to have come from one office in Hyderabad.
The board has not said anything about whether its own workers were involved.
It has also not focused its investigation on that office.
This makes it look like the board is blaming the colleges while ignoring what happened inside its own offices.
Officials of the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education (TGBIE) are alleged to have facilitated the issue of fake fire NOCs to colleges that the board later fined for submitting them.
About 90 percent of the fake certificates reportedly originated from the District Intermediate Education (DIE) office in Hyderabad.
The board has remained silent on the role of its own officials, and internal inquiries are not turning towards the DIE Hyderabad office.
An anonymous official told The Hans India that fake fire safety certificates have been used as a way to obtain affiliations for the past two years.
DIE Hyderabad has jurisdiction over about 455 junior colleges, with roughly 1,200 students studying in each.
- Who
- Officials of the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education (TGBIE), particularly those in the District Intermediate Education (DIE) office in Hyderabad, and private junior colleges that submitted fake fire NOCs.
- What
- TGBIE officials are alleged to have facilitated the issue of fake fire No Objection Certificates to colleges, which the board then fined for submitting fake NOCs; questions have been raised over the board's silence about its own officials' role.
- Where
- Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
- When
- No specific date is given; the practice is reported to have been ongoing for the past two years, and the board recently announced fines on the colleges.
- Why
- Fake fire safety certificates were reportedly used as a way to obtain college affiliations, and about 90 percent of the fake certificates allegedly came from the DIE Hyderabad office.
Critics of the board
The board's position
Who is responsible for the fake fire NOCs?
Critics of the board
Allegations say TGBIE and DIE Hyderabad officials facilitated the fake certificates, with about 90 percent coming from the Hyderabad district; the board is silent on their role and internal inquiries avoid the DIE office.
The board's position
The board's penalty action treats the private junior colleges as responsible, fining them for 'submitting fake NOCs'.
Key facts
- Alleged facilitators
- Officials of the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education (TGBIE) and the District Intermediate Education (DIE), Hyderabad
- Fake certificates from Hyderabad
- About 90 percent, reportedly via DIE Hyderabad
- Penalty imposed
- Fines slapped on private junior colleges that submitted fake certificates
- Practice ongoing
- Past two years, according to an anonymous official
- Junior colleges under DIE Hyderabad
- About 455
- Students per college
- About 1,200
- Fire NOC issuers before HYDRAA
- Office of the Director of Fire Safety for buildings above 15 meters; a special GHMC wing for lower buildings in commercial complexes
Quotes
Anonymous TGBIE official
An official from the Telangana Board of Intermediate Education who spoke on condition of anonymity
“Everyone from the top to bottom knows that the fake fire safety certificates are a hot currency to get affiliations, and it has been going on for the past two years.”
thehansindia.com











