CAG detects infirmities in procurement of equipment for J&K health institutions

 VIVEK SHARMA
JAMMU: The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has found glaring codal deficiencies in the purchases of pharmaceutical equipments for health institutions in Jammu and Kashmir.
The supply orders for procurement of various diagnostic equipment involving Rs 1. 17 crores, purported to have been issued by the AIIMS New Delhi were actually found were found tampered by the auditors.
“Possibility of many other procurements on large scale cannot be ruled out”, the CAG report, tabled in the Legislative Assembly, apprehended.
On the basis of fake and forged supply orders, the procurement for Jammu and Kashmir health institutions has been carried out by GMC Jammu, GMC Srinagar and Directorate of Health Services.
The CAG report says, “Since the health institutions had placed supply orders on the basis of photocopies of the outside health institutions, the Audit team carried out cross verification of a sample of 24 supply orders issued by the AIIMS, New Delhi and PGI Chandigarh, which had been used by the test checked health institutions for procurement of different types of machinery/equipment, to ascertain the genuineness of the supply orders.”
The cross verification showed that six supply orders ,claimed to have been issued by the AIIMS New Delhi, had either not been issued by AIIMS at all or had been tampered.
“Since this exercise had been conducted by the Audit in a test check manner, possibility of such procurement on large scale, and by the other health institutions, cannot be ruled out”, observed the CAG.
The report further suggests that the matter was referred to Commissioner-Secretary Health and the progress on action taken was awaited. The Director Health Service Jammu reported to the CAG that the concerned firm had been asked to explain position in this regard.
As per the report, “The Director Finance of the Health Department stated that the Health Department had knowledge about the fake supply order before it was observed by the audit and had asked the Principal Government Medical College Srinagar to take appropriate action in the matter”.
The Director Finance was reported to have quoted the information furnished by the Director health Services Kashmir wherein it was stated that no payment had been released except Rs. 14.17 lakh in favour of the supplier during 2012-13 and that all the subordinate offices had been directed not to release any payment in favour of the supplier for the items procured during 2012-13.
“It was also stated that Police action had been initiated into the matter and lifetime ban been imposed on the supplier against participating in the tendering process”, the CAG report stated, adding that the “The reply was not convincing as the fraud had occurred due to non-finalisation of Rate Contracts for Machinery/Equipment and procurement thereof on the basis of RCs/Supply Orders finalised/placed by the other health institutions.”