Punjab Well being Techniques Company Rip-off: Rs 13 crore items purchased with out tender
Vishav Bharti
Chandigarh, February 19
Punjab Well being Techniques Company (PHSC) procured medical provides value Rs 60 crore through the pandemic interval by “throwing guidelines to the wind and in an autocratic method”. These information got here to the fore in a particular audit of the company carried out by the state authorities.
Following The Tribune’s collection of tales between March and September 2022 on varied scams in Covid-related procurement like hand sanitisers, masks, furnishings, flooring disinfectants, the Punjab Authorities had ordered a particular audit of the acquisition that befell between March 2020 and March 2022. The report has famous that in this era, the six IAS officers who have been Managing Director, PHSC, have been Manvesh Singh Sidhu, Amit Kumar, Kumar Rahul, Surabhi Malik, Tanu Kashyap and Bhupinder Singh. Dr Rajesh Sharma, Dr Manjit Singh and Dr Sharanjit Kaur have been Director Procurement.
“It appears that evidently the procurement on the company was finished in an autocratic approach with out following due process and guidelines notified by the federal government. The officers have used their energy in an arbitrary method and was apathetic and unconcerned concerning the transparency required to be adopted in public procurement,” the report noticed.
As per the report, buy of 16 gadgets value Rs 60 crore befell throughout this era and charge contracts of assorted gadgets of a number of crore have been additionally signed. Like within the case of buy of Truenat (chip-based actual time PCR) check kits and e-stethoscopes value Rs 9.89 crore, the audit workforce has famous that “the officers have been apathetic in following due process and guidelines framed by the governments.”
The same statement has been made in procurement of totally auto analysers value Rs 13.19 crore. The audit discovered that the provision order of 225 analysers was issued. However the order was positioned as repeat order on the idea of a single web page order of Division of Animal Husbandry, Bhopal. There are not any paperwork or notings positioned on file concerning justification of this procurement. The order for such an enormous quantity with out inviting any tender / bids appears to be an autocratic approach of procuring gadgets with out following due procedures. “There’s a sturdy chance of endowing excessive undue monetary advantages to the agency…” states the audit.
Discussing the hand sanitiser procurement, the audit noticed that the earlier L-1 bidder, who was chosen for procurement to the Election Fee for provide of hand sanitisers at Rs 54 per bottle, was by no means requested for extra provide of 1,55,910 bottles.
PHSC initiated the method of procurement on Controller of Shops charges which was Rs 160 per bottle on a request letter acquired from M/s NW Abroad. Additionally, the procurement department didn’t put up the again historical past and former efforts for buying hand sanitiser.
Equally, on the procurement of floor disinfectants (Rs 1,800 per litre disinfectant purchased as an alternative of Rs 30 per litre sanitiser), the audit noticed that it was finished towards the requisition of the Well being Division and on a lot larger charges.
Audit findings
- Absolutely auto analysers value Rs 13.19 cr purchased with out inviting bids
- Buy of hand sanitiser initiated from NW Abroad at Rs 160/bottle towards Rs 54/bottle
- As a substitute of Rs 30/litre sanitiser, floor disinfectant purchased for Rs 1,800/litre