A Central Health Ministry probe panel set up to audit the country’s top Sports Injury Centre at Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi has found huge irregularities in its functioning — ranging from violation in procurement of equipments and facilities, financial mis-management to serious discrepancies in appointments of healthcare professionals.
The panel after submitting an interim report to the Union Health Ministry on October 2018 which said that “available records and evidence, prima-facie, indicate collusion of SIC with some suppliers thereby causing loss to the patients and public exchequer,” has recently submitted yet another extensive 62 pages report in the matter.
The Ministry in September last year had set up a seven-member panel, headed by Joint Secretary Rajeev Manjhi, to take up the special audit of SIC’s functioning in various areas ranging from equipments and facilities for operation theatres to their procurement and maintenance.
Both the reports have recommended a detailed probe into the matter in view of “blatant violation of CVCs instructions and has sought immediate action against those responsible for irregularities”. The matter is now under the scanner of Union Health Minister JP Nadda. When contacted, Union Health Secretary Preeti Sudan said appropriate action will be taken in the matter.
The huge gross irregularities have also pointed needle of suspicion towards the then director of the SIC, Dr Deepak Chaudhary.
Intriguingly, the Ministry in December 2018 had issued a notice to Dr Chaudhary too for “taking up a commercial assignment with a private hospital without prior permission from the Government”. Sources said that pending reply, the Ministry has put on hold his request for voluntary retirement from Dr RML Hospital which he had joined after serving several years in the SIC. The probe panel in its interim report said “On scrutiny of the files pertaining to procurement of equipments and facilities for operation theatre and physiotherapy units of the SIC, it has been observed that there are blatant violations of general financial rules (GFRs) and the procedures adopted are repugnant to CVC instructions.
“With regard to usefulness and usability of the equipment with almost similar functions have been proposed to be procured twice by furnishing a certificate that the said equipments are being procured not as replacement or additional but as a first-time procurement. Frequent purchases have been resorted to for certain equipments such as arthroscope 30 and 70 degrees, and camera etc.
“It is surprising that these equipments have been condemned even during the manufacturers’ warranty period. …many equipments are not in working conditions. There is no clarity with regard to CAMC/AMC….. It has also been observed that Director, SIC indented some expensive equipments for procurement projecting quite high usability, whereas the same are being utilized much below the projected usability of the equipment ie even less than 10 per cent, thus suggesting infructuous expenditure for extraneous considerations,” further said the report.
The panel has also suspected nexus between SIC, SFH and M/S Mahajan Imaging, a private diagnostic player. “The centre (SIC) made recommendations by concealing some vital information which resulted in extending favour to M/Mahajan Imaging by relaxing the terms of agreement and to neutralize substantial amount of penalty accruing to the Government, which could have been imposed because of violation of the terms of the contract and the decision in this regard has been taken at the level of Director (SIC) and MS Safdarjung Hospital. Besides there is no system in place to monitor the free cases as agreed…” notes the report.
Also, “….. there is no rationalized purchase procedure followed by procurement of implants in SIC. Documents made available to the panel evidently indicate of a nexus between SIC and a particular supplier who has been supplying almost 90 per cent of implants at exorbitant rates.
“The records suggests that the provisions of the GFRs have been twisted …while a close scrutiny of the operation theatre records reveal that disproportionately large number of surgeries were performed by using implants of certain makes (Depuy and Arthrex).
The final 62 pages report too has recommended further detailed investigation in view of “blatant violations of GFRs/CVCs instructions” and large scale irregularities.
“The Indenting officer (HOD) may be made personally accountable for submitting false indents,” said the report even as it has sought annual audit of the high-value equipments and devices among others.
