A fake doctor had been working in a rural hospital on contractual basis for nearly three years! After a buzz over it by media and public, the doctor is now reportedly missing.
He was identified as Padmanavan Mukhi Karwa, posted in the Nuagaon New PHC in 2016. He occasionally went on deputation to the Hatibari CHC.
As the area is a tribals-dominated region, he was succeeding to camouflage his true identity and cheat the patients there. But the pharmacist working in the hospital had a haunch over his qualification as he was prescribing wrong medicines.
After that, some local residents finally could know the education certificates of the fake doctor through an RTI reply. It is also alleged that since last many months, the locals were applying for information about the doctor through RTI, but they were denied the same as the fake doctor has certain nexus with some officials in the office of the CDMO, Sundargarh.
It is also learnt that earlier to this, the accused doctor was posted in the Hi Tech Medical College and Hospital, Railways and the Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) Social Welfare Department by submission of a fake certificate.
Even it is learnt that on January 1, 2018, professor of Hi Tech Medical College Dr Sradhananda Mohapatra had written to the CDMO Sundargarh that Karwa is not a registered MBBS doctor. Despite this, he was allowed to continue in his position.
Interestingly, the doctor’s documents reveal that he is a resident of Bihar but got MBBS from the VIMSAR, Burla and schooling from Rourkela. But without getting registered under the Odisha Medical Council, he has registered in the Bihar Medical Council which clearly raises eyebrows. Despite this without thoroughly verifying his documents in first stage, the Hi Tech Medical College and Hospital, Railways and the Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) Social welfare Department gave him posting and later tried to verify the documents. Interestingly none of the management of those three organisations sued the fake doctor.
CDMO, Sundargarh Dr Saroj Mishra said he has written to the VIMSAR authorities to verify credentials of Karwa. He further said that as he is new and the initial probe revealed that Karwa was registered with the Bihar Medical Council, he has also written to the Bihar Medical Council to verify the authenticity of his credentials.
Meanwhile, an inquiry has been initiated into the matter.