More skeletons are tumbling out in the Vyapam scam, which has exposed a nefarious nexus between the medical fraternity and the political class in Madhya Pradesh.
An audit of government hospitals conducted by the Office of the Accountant General in Gwalior this month has found excess payment to the tune of Rs. 1.15 crore, higher than the tender rate, in the purchase of medicines and orthopaedic implants in Jayarogya group of hospitals, affiliated to the government-owned G.R. Medical College in Gwalior.
A copy of the latest audit report accessed by The Hindu shows that the Jayarogya hospital did not adhere to the tender rules laid down by the government and gave exemptions to its preferred supplier, when medicines could have been purchased at lower rates.
“The role of doctors in the spurious drug supply racket unearthed by the government auditors has to be probed further,” said Ashish Chaturvedi, one of the prominent whistleblowers in the Vyapam scam. Based on his complaint about a “drug procurement racket” in the hospital, the Economic Offences Wing in Gwalior, in a letter dated July 30, has replied that investigations have been launched against S.N. Iyengar, head of the department of neurosurgery at G.R. Medical College, and another medical superintendent, Kamal Badoria, for financial malpractice in the procurement of medicines.
Spurious medicinesAudit reports for the year ending March 2014, submitted to the Madhya Pradesh Assembly on July 22 and accessed by The Hindu , reveal that medicines procured by doctors in government hospitals were not tested for their quality before distribution. Medicines worth Rs. 65 lakh purchased by the Chief Medical and Health Officers (CMHOs) and Civil Surgeons (CSs) were found to be “not of standard quality” in tests conducted by the Food and Drug Administration. According to the drug policy, medicines purchased from suppliers are to be sent for testing within three days of receipt.
The audit revealed that the empanelled supplier for medicines had breached the 60-day supply deadline for orders, for which hospitals are required to levy a 20 per cent penalty. But the penalty amounting to Rs.2.37 crore was not levied on the supplier.
Audit reports also show that the government was deprived of over Rs. 1 crore in revenue due to short levy of stamp duty and non-registration of lease deeds by the Rogi Kalyan Samitis (patient welfare committees). The RKS constructed and rented out shops to private individuals at a premium on government hospital land.
