Nagpur : A recruitment scam using the name of the government’s skill development mission has come to fore, with duped job aspirants lodging a complaint with Yashodhara Nagar police station on Monday. The victims were lured by advertisements published in the name of ‘National Management and Skill Development Yojana’, which promised government jobs on enrolling for training by depositing Rs3,000 to Rs4,000 in specified bank accounts.
TOI has been following the scam since last one week, after it received a tip-off. The scamsters too realized their game was up after the TOI tried to speak to them. A woman called Pallavi Zamre, whose number was given in the advertisement, cut off the phone when she came to know the call was from TOI office. The youths who were duped used to talk to her regularly earlier, but her phone is switched off now.
Even the National Skill Development Corporation, the official agency of the central government, has blacklisted ‘National Management and Skill Development Yojana’ on their website.
The aspirants hailing from Wardha, Amravati and Chandrapur fell prey as they were assured salaries ranging from Rs16,000 to Rs30,000 per month. They were promised positions like taluka, district or zonal managers as well as teachers and surveyors.
Interestingly, all these youths were called for training on March 21, but the date was later changed to March 25, at IMA Hall on North Ambazari Road. However, officials at the hall informed TOI that there was no such event scheduled on that day. Those who were fleeced decided to meet at Indora Square to discuss future course of action. Hemant Bhaisare and Avinash Sangole, two among 16 complainants, then lodged a police complaint.
They told TOI that most of them had left existing jobs in pursuit of a lucrative opportunity while some opted for the scheme out of desperate need for financial stability. “I had to pay a higher amount as I applied for the position of a zonal manager, while Sangole had to pay a lower amount because he applied for the position of a taluka manager. The company promised in offer letters that 50% of the amount will be reimbursed in the first month’s salary,” Bhaisare told TOI.
All candidates were asked to make payments to bank accounts in the name of three individuals through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) or cash deposit. These accounts were in the names of Rohan Lal, Iqbal Ali and Premnath Ambikar, in Bank of Maharashtra, Bank of Baroda, and Bank of India respectively.
An agreement printed on stamp paper worth Rs500 was provided to the job applicants, but this turned out to be fake, as the complainants realized recently, since all documents had the same serial number.
The letterheads used for correspondence displayed the company’s head office in a housing society in Bhandup West, Mumbai. When victims contacted the local post office, they found that while the housing society existed, no company by the name of ‘National Management and Skill Development Yojana’ had an office there.
The complainants said the office bearers were unreachable on mobile after they got the money, and didn’t even inform about their office address. “Only Bhaisare was in contact with them, and asked a significant number of people to join the scheme,” they said.
They added that the firm had floated another advertisement on March 20 in a local daily, inviting more aspirants.
Note: News shared for public awareness with reference from the information provided at online news portals.
