Millions Siphoned: Audit Uncovers Massive Financial Irregularity in LNMU Automation Project

An audit by the Principal Accountant General has exposed severe fiscal negligence and potential corruption within the Lalit Narayan Mithila University’s digital infrastructure contracts.

The promise of a seamless, modern digital experience for students at Lalit Narayan Mithila University (LNMU) has hit a wall of hard financial reality. A scathing audit report from the Principal Accountant General, Patna, has brought to light a systematic pattern of fund mismanagement, where crores of rupees were released to a private vendor despite questionable service delivery and blatant contract violations.

The trouble centers on an agreement signed in 2021 between the university and Lucknow-based SoftPro India Computer Technologies Pvt Ltd. Under the original terms, the initial establishment fee was meant to cover one full year of support and maintenance. Yet, the university administration allegedly bypassed these clauses, clearing an "inadmissible" payment of over Rs 92 lakh specifically for first-year maintenance—a cost that was already baked into the setup fee.

Service Gaps and Double Payments

When the university administration finally sought performance reports from its 43 constituent colleges, the data painted a bleak picture. Only 27 colleges described the automation work as "satisfactory," while 16 labeled it as "unsatisfactory" or merely "average." Despite this mediocre feedback, the university proceeded to calculate payments totaling Rs 4,39,56,750 across three installments, ignoring the ground reality of the digital rollout.

The audit also flagged a more brazen inefficiency: several institutions, including APSM College in Barhni, DBKN College in Narhan, and SBSS College in Begusarai, had been bypassing the central SoftPro system entirely. These colleges were hiring local, third-party IT agencies like IT Hub Solutions and Webhut Technologies to manage their automation, yet the university continued to pay SoftPro for the very same work. To make matters more suspicious, the vendor’s billing cycle was erratic—some invoices arrived with a 17-month delay, while others were processed well ahead of time.

Financial Misconduct and Tax Irregularities

The probe extends beyond software contracts. Investigators discovered that while the university deducted Rs 3,07,352 as GST-TDS from civil works projects, the money never reached the public exchequer. This failure to file returns suggests a direct loss to the state revenue, adding a layer of statutory violation to the administrative mess. In response to the audit’s findings, the university registrar, under directives from the Vice-Chancellor, has now scrambled to issue a formal notice, demanding evidence and detailed explanations from all concerned college principals.

Why it matters

This case is a classic example of how procurement processes in large public institutions become susceptible to "contractual drift." When universities prioritize vendor-friendly billing cycles over performance metrics and transparent auditing, the primary casualty is the student body. The pattern seen here—paying for redundant services while failing to remit statutory taxes—signals a deep-seated lack of oversight. For an institution of this scale, the fallout is not just financial; it erodes the credibility of the university's digital transformation agenda, leaving a trail of questions that a mere show-cause notice to college principals may not fully resolve.