Directorate of Higher Education (DHE) issued a notification on Thursday under the Maharashtra Educational Institutions (Management) Act, 1976, appointing the divisional joint director of higher education, Pune, as administrator of the seven permanently unaided colleges
Directorate of Higher Education (DHE) issued a notification on Thursday under the Maharashtra Educational Institutions (Management) Act, 1976, appointing the divisional joint director of higher education, Pune, as administrator of the seven permanently unaided colleges. Despite court directions issued in July 2025 and Aug 2026, and repeated reminders from the Pune divisional higher education office between Nov 2025 and April 2026, the management did not clear the dues, it stated. Deolankar said, “The department had also held joint hearings with Sinhgad Technical Education Society’s representatives and petitioning employees in Sept 2026. Subsequently, the management was directed to calculate and pay pending salaries through communications issued on Sept 30 and Nov 4. It stated that at least 13 employees had died by suicide amid financial distress linked to prolonged non-payment of salaries, a matter HC took serious note of in its Nov 3 order. The DHE issued a show-cause notice to the society on Nov 5 asking why management of the colleges should not be taken over. The Nov 12 order stated that the society did not submit any response.
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Higher education director Shailendra Deolankar said, “The management had failed to discharge its responsibilities and that its functioning was affecting students’ academic interests. Pune: State govt has taken over the management of seven colleges run by Sinhgad Technical Education Society for three years, citing prolonged non-payment of salaries and retirement benefits to employees and the impact on students’ education. The seven colleges covered by order are Sinhgad College of Law at Ambegaon, Shrimati Kashibai Navale College of Education (Kusgaon, Lonavla), Sinhgad College of Arts and Commerce (Narhe), Nirvrutti Babaji Navale College of Commerce and Science (Kusgaon), Sinhgad College of Commerce (Kondhwa), Shrimati Kashibai Navale College of Commerce (Erandwane) and Sinhgad College of Science (Ambegaon Budruk). The order states that the department was satisfied that taking over the management was necessary in the public interest, particularly to protect the interests of students. The DHE notification stated that employees had approached Bombay high court over non-payment of salaries and retirement benefits. Join conversation Share your thoughts in the comments Be respectful · TOI community guidelines These directions, too, were not followed. The notification also noted protests by teaching and non-teaching employees and Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh over unpaid salaries and arrears under the sixth and seventh pay commissions. The takeover order gives effect to the HC’s direction to DHE and Directorate of Technical Education to take appropriate action, in accordance with law, against other defaulting institutions where orders were yet to be passed. Download the TOI App.
The govt action follows repeated failure by the management to clear employees’ dues despite court directions, govt notices and hearings, as well as a Bombay HC directive on Tuesday to act against defaulting institutions.
Observing that it has not come across any institution that has defaulted and “actually exploited such large number of employees” for years, Bombay HC on Tuesday directed Central Bureau of Investigation , Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax authorities to investigate the affairs of 44 institutions run by Sinhgad Technical Education Society and restrained its trustees from dealing with any of their movable or immovable properties pending such probe.