Bhubaneswar, Jan 29: The Department of Higher Education (DHE), Govt of Odisha, has taken a tough stance against the principals of 63 non-government-aided degree colleges across the state, reportedly for their failure in maintaining college accounts in the mandated CAPA (College Accounts Portal Application) module.

The DHE has withheld salaries of those principals for allegedly ignoring the government directives to maintain college accounts. As per the report, despite repeated warnings, the 63 colleges have not updated their college accounts in the CAPA portal.

The DHE had earlier instructed the colleges to update their accounts of FY 2024-25 in the portal. An official letter, addressing the principals, from DHE mentioned, "It is now decided that your salary for the month of January 2025 onwards is withheld until compliance by you."

The formal letter also says that the principals failed to meet the deadline despite repeated reminders, which forced the department to take the call to withhold their salaries for indefinite period.

Notably, Jajpur district has the highest number of defaulters with 11 principals in the list. Similarly, Cuttack and Balasore each have four principals, whose salaries have been withheld.

What is CAPA?

The CAPA is a digital platform to streamline financial management and enhance transparency in higher education institutions. It has been implemented by Odisha as well as several other states in the country.

In a bid to to improve efficiency, reduce paperwork, and promote accountability in the utilisation of funds allocated to colleges, the portal facilitates online submission of college accounts enabling regulatory bodies to oversee financial transactions as well as to ensure compliance with government directives.

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