The CBI has registered a corruption case against officials of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) and a private company in the purchase of licenses for accessing a global patent database software causing losses of Rs 10 crore.
CBI sources said eight officials of the Mohali-based autonomous institute under Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers including present officiating Director, former Director and other senior officials have been named by the agency in the agency FIR.
A Pune-based private company Sciedge Informatics has also been named in the FIR filed under IPC sections relating to criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act.
It is alleged that the company was supplying annual licences for accessing global patent database software ‘Scifinder’ at the rate of $36,000 to other companies while it was supplying these licences to NIPER at the rate of $51,000 annual rate thus causing a loss of Rs 10 crore between 2007 and 2012, the sources said.
According to the CBI FIR, unknown officials of Union Chemical and Fertilisers Ministry also entered in criminal conspiracy in the misappropriation of funds, falsification of records and diversion of funds in the process.
The agency said searches were conducted at 22 places in the national
Capital, Bhopal, Thiruvananthapuram, Kurukshetra, Chandigarh, Mohali, Bhatinda and Pune.
The agency also searched the residence of officials and office of NIPER.