Taking cognisance of the shoddy manner in which a controversial sterilisation camp was conducted by an NGO in the backwaters of north-eastern Bihar last month, the State Health Society (SHS) has served notice on the Araria district civil surgeon, directing her to explain how she gave a clean chit to the NGO that conducted 61 tubal ligation surgeries in a few hours.
The move comes days after The Hindu in a detailed expose laid bare the conditions under which the camp was held by the NGO, in flagrant violation of sterilisation norms, on the premises of a middle-school in the remote hamlet of Kaparfora.
Investigating authorities from the SHS and the State police have found major lapses in the manner in which the camp was conducted on the evening of January 7 by the Jai Ambe Welfare society, an accredited NGO operating in the Purnea-Araria belt.
In her report, Husna Ara Begum, the civil surgeon, stated that the camp had taken place “during the day” and that it had been “a success,” with “no complaints from any of the beneficiaries.”
The report had been presented by Principal Secretary (Health) Amarjeet Sinha, who at the time had termed it a prima facie account of the matter.
Speaking to this correspondent, K.K. Singh of the SHS acknowledged that the NGO organisers had violated several norms while organising the “impromptu” camp.
“Camp timings should be during the day, from 9 a.m. to 4p.m. Further there was no evidence of any paramedical staff having been assembled by the organisers in this case,” he said.
When the patients exceed 30 in number, additional surgeons are usually deployed by the organisers, while in this case only one surgeon, A.K. Choudhary, operated on the patients, Dr. Singh said.
It is yet to be ascertained from accounts whether those accompanying the surgeon could be dubbed ‘quacks' or not, he said, and added that the camp was overseen by a district medical officer.
He, however, did not rule out “alternative arrangements” while holding such family planning camps in the remote hinterland.
On the question of complaints from the beneficiaries, he stated that there were only “minor injuries,” and the surgeries were by and large successful. Three women had profuse bleeding that day after tubal ligation surgeries were performed on them.
Meanwhile, a fresh FIR (14/12 dated 02/02/2012) has been lodged by the Araria police against the promoters of the Jai Ambe Trust, accusing them of cheating and forgery.
More than 60 forged stamp heads were seized by the police in a raid in Purnea.
