The Rajasthan government has admitted in the State Assembly that employees of state and district central cooperative banks were granted additional salary increments for MCA and MSc (IT) qualifications without verifying the validity of their degrees.
The disclosure came in a written reply to a question raised by MLA Chetan Patel Kolana during the fifth session of the 16th Rajasthan Legislative Assembly.
According to the Cooperation Department, additional salary increments for MCA and MSc (IT) qualifications are not currently admissible in state and district central cooperative banks. However, such benefits had been extended under earlier wage settlements.
The department acknowledged that the validity of the degrees was not verified before the additional increments were approved. Subsequent scrutiny revealed that some qualifications were not in accordance with prescribed norms, prompting banks to initiate recovery proceedings.
A district-wise statement tabled in the Assembly showed that employees of the Rajasthan State Cooperative Bank (Apex Bank) and several district central cooperative banks had availed themselves of the benefit.
The Rajasthan State Cooperative Apex Bank reported the recovery of Rs 107.42 lakh, along with interest, after verifying MCA and MSc (IT) qualifications. The Assembly was also informed that 22 employees who had received additional increments after the 14th Wage Settlement were subjected to fresh salary fixation, and the excess amount was recovered with interest.
Similarly, Jaipur Central Cooperative Bank recovered Rs 51 lakh from 24 employees after revising salaries under the 15th Wage Settlement. Recoveries have also been reported by cooperative banks in Ajmer, Alwar, Dausa, Hanumangarh, Jhalawar, Kota, Pali, Sikar, Sri Ganganagar and Udaipur.
The reply further revealed that some employees had challenged the verification process in the Rajasthan High Court and secured interim relief, resulting in certain cases remaining under judicial consideration.
The disclosures have raised concerns over the absence of a mechanism to verify educational qualifications before granting qualification-based salary benefits and have highlighted the need for stronger due diligence in the cooperative banking sector.
