Punjab Medical Education and Research Minister Brahm Mohindra on Wednesday ordered a vigilance inquiry to expose a fake degree racket operating in the state.

The probe has been ordered following complaints that fake certificates and fake degrees of Bachelor of Ayurveda Medicine and Surgery (B.A.M.S.) were being issued in the name of the Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS) at Faridkot."The matter of fake certificates and fake degrees was detected by the Registrar of the Board of Ayurvedic and Unani Systems of Medicine Punjab when Rajesh Kumar of Gurdaspur visited the board office for renewal of his registration certificate bearing registration no 10,967. The registrar, Sanjeev Goyal, found that the certificates of the candidate were fake as the same registration number stood in the name of Sonam Dhiman of Pathankot district," an official spokesperson said here.

Mohindra said that this seemed to be a widespread menace and the same will be unearthed and guilty shall be brought to book.He said that some people were duping candidates and endangering the health and the lives of the innocent public."The minister even suspected that such elements might be the source of spread of intoxicants in the state," the spokesperson said.The fake certificates have been issued by a Hoshiarpur-based institute.