By Tejas Navale

Pune, September 12, 2024: In the wake of the Pooja Khedkar case, which garnered significant attention across the country, a similar controversy has surfaced involving six engineers from the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). These engineers are suspected of obtaining fake disability certificates to secure their positions within the corporation.

The Disability Commissionerate, led by Commissioner Praveen Puri, has flagged the issue after receiving complaints about the six officials. Following a preliminary review of their documents, suspicions have grown, prompting Puri to request Pune Municipal Commissioner Rajendra Bhosale to initiate a medical examination of these engineers. However, despite this request being made over a month ago, the medical examinations have yet to be conducted.

The six engineers, who joined the PMC at various times, hold different positions within the corporation. Each is suspected of using fraudulent disability certificates to secure their jobs:

A sub-engineer who joined in 2001 presented a certificate claiming osteomyelitis.

A branch engineer hired in 2007 also submitted an osteomyelitis certificate.

Three branch engineers, all hired between 2016 and 2017, are accused of providing certificates for short vision and deafness.

A junior engineer hired in 2022 submitted a certificate claiming short vision.

The Disability Commissionerate has expressed concerns over the authenticity of these claims. Although the department has reviewed the documents, the lack of a thorough medical examination means the full extent of the situation remains unclear. It is expected that further investigation could bring more issues to light.