Skip to main content

Amidst privatisation move corruption scandal "rocks" Ahmedabad's top public hospital

Counterview Desk
Four independent board members of the Vadilal Sarabhai General and Chinai Maternity Hospitals, Ahmedabad's top public health care facilities catering to the needs of the poor for decades, have taken strong objection to the failure of the city authorities to cope corruption scandals rocking them.
Signed by Rupa Chinai, Brijesh Chinai, Jay Sheth and Dr Nishith Shah, belonging to the original donor family, the board members in a statement have also objected to the move to hand over prime space in the Sarabhai General and Chinai Hospitals to private agencies, bringing in "obscure diagnostic services" on a contractual basis.
"We see this as part of a worrying move to undermine medical services in the existing hospitals", they insist.

Text of the statement:

The constant interference and corruption scandals perpetuated by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation-created Medical Education Trust (AMC-MET) in the administrative affairs of the Vadilal Sarabhai (VS) General and Chinai Maternity Hospitals is yet again dragging down the reputation of this 80-year-old institution established by Sardar Vallabhai Patel in 1931.
We, the independent members of the VS board of management, representing the donor families, are forced, in the interest of transparency and accountability, to inform the public of Ahmedabad about two recent corruption scandals that are admitted by the board, but resulting in cover up, inaction and extensive loss to the public exchequer.
The first instance of corruption pertains to a major fraud whereby Rs 8 crore of the Employees' Provident Fund were wrongfully invested by the hospital administration, led by Superintendent Dr. Sandeep Malhan with the backing of AMC-MET. The issue of this investment was never brought before the VSH board of management for clearance. It led to a penalty of Rs 7 crore and Rs 63 lakh being imposed by the Provident Fund Commissioner.
The AMC, in an effort to cover up its complicity has advanced a grant to the hospital to pay this penalty. Meanwhile, the agenda for the forthcoming VSH board Meeting of December 14, 2018, seeks the board ’s sanction in challenging the PF Commissioner’s penalty in the High Court.
This same matter had also come up in the agenda of the previous board meeting held on October 12, 2018 when we had demanded answers to the following questions: Who is responsible for this wrongful investment? What is the reason for the penalty charged to VSH? Why was the issue not placed before the VSH board of management for initial clearance? Why has the AMC tried to cover up for this by advancing penalty payment? Why has a police complaint not been filed against the persons perpetuating this fraud and leading to such a huge loss to the Institution and the public exchequer?
No answers were provided. We seek approval of the board yet again in the forthcoming meeting of December 14, when we have already placed our objections on record is outrageous. A detailed independent report on this very serious matter is required. Action must be initiated to recover the funds and to frame charges against those responsible for this fraud.
While the minutes of meeting of October 12, 2018 records that the board “unanimously agreed” to remove Dr Malhan from the office of the superintendent, the fact that he continues there is yet again an indicator of the interference of AMC-MET in the affairs of the independently managed VS Hospitals.
A second instance of corruption recently coming to light is the disappearance of 126 albumin injections in the Department of Gastroenterology Surgery at Chinai Maternity Hospital. Valued at Rs 5 lakh, they were meant to be given free to poor patients. An inquiry was conducted by the matron, the resident medical officer and the casualty medical officer and their report was dated September 24, 2018.
Despite this the superintendent, Dr Malhan, suppressed this report and did not at any stage, inform the board about this incident. At the board meeting of October 12, 2018, the board chairperson and AMC Members said they were unaware of this incident. When we questioned Dr Malhan about this information obtained from our sources, he confirmed this incident but could not explain his role in not informing the VSH board of management to whom he is directly answerable.
A reading of the Inquiry Committee’s report reveals that the Head of Department, Dr Mahendra Bhavsar, has not been questioned in the Inquiry when he is responsible for all matters as Head of Department. The resignation of Dr Malhan, who is responsible for this and several other corruption scandals, was once again demanded by us, but has been ignored.
Yet another seriously worrying trend we see is the move by the present board to hand over prime space in the Sarabhai General and Chinai Hospitals to private agencies bringing in obscure diagnostic services on a contractual basis. We see this as part of a worrying move to undermine medical services in the existing hospitals ,and render them redundant, while transferring staff, equipment and beds to the new Multi-Speciality Hospital to be inaugurated shortly.
Any move to barter away space or resources of an existing trust to an extraneous trust such as AMC-MET is deemed illegal unless it has the sanction of the full board . When half the nine member board has objected in writing to the bartering of the trust’s resources and challenged the move in the Gujarat High Court, the continued defiance of the AMC and its representatives on the VS board requires urgent sanctions through strong public protest and intervention of saner authorities.

Comments

Uma said…
This in Mody's Ahmedabad!

TRENDING

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam*  Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

Central pollution watchdog sees red in Union ministry labelling waste to energy green

By Chythenyen Devika Kulasekaran*  “Destructors”, “incinerators” and “waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration” all mean the same thing – indiscriminate burning of garbage! Having a history of about one and a half centuries, WTE incinerators have seen several reboots over the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. 

First-of-its-kind? 'Eco-friendly, low cost' sewage treatment system installed in Gujarat

Counterview Desk Following the installation of the Unconventional Decentralized Multi-Stage Reactor (UDMSR) for sewage treatment, a note on what is claimed to be the  first-of-its-kind technology said, the treated sewage from this system “can be directly utilized for agricultural purposes”, even as proving to be a “saviour in the times of water crisis.”

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Indo-Bangla border: Farmers facing 'illegal obstacles' in harvesting, transporting yields

  Counterview Desk  In a representation to the chairperson, National Human Rights Commission, human rights defender Kirity Roy, who is secretary, Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), has said that Border Security Force (BSF) personnel are creating "illegal obstacles" for farmers seeking to harvest their ripened yields and transport them to the market in village Jhaukuthi of Cooch Behar district.

Wasteland, a colonial legacy, being used to 'give away' vast tracts to Ratnagiri refinery

By Fouziya Tehzeeb* William D’Souza, a 55-year old farmer from Kuthethur, Mangalore, was busy mixing cattle feed when we arrived at his doorsteps. Around 25 km from the bustling city of Mangalore, Kuthethur is a lush green village with thick vegetation. On the way to William’s house the idyllic view gets blocked by the flares and smoke arising from the Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL).

'Flawed' argument: Gandhi had minimal role, naval mutinies alone led to Independence

Counterview Desk Reacting to a Counterview  story , "Rewiring history? Bose, not Gandhi, was real Father of Nation: British PM Attlee 'cited'" (January 26, 2016), an avid reader has forwarded  reaction  in the form of a  link , which carries the article "Did Atlee say Gandhi had minimal role in Independence? #FactCheck", published in the site satyagrahis.in. The satyagraha.in article seeks to debunk the view, reported in the Counterview story, taken by retired army officer GD Bakshi in his book, “Bose: An Indian Samurai”, which claims that Gandhiji had a minimal role to play in India's freedom struggle, and that it was Netaji who played the crucial role. We reproduce the satyagraha.in article here. Text: Nowadays it is said by many MK Gandhi critics that Clement Atlee made a statement in which he said Gandhi has ‘minimal’ role in India's independence and gave credit to naval mutinies and with this statement, they concluded the whole freedom struggle.

CAA disregards India's inclusive plural ethos, 'betrays' ideals of freedom struggle: PUCL

Counterview Desk    "Outraged" at the move of the Central government to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA 2019) weeks before the election, the top rights group, People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), has demanded that the law be repealed. 

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Sections of BSF, BGB personnel 'directly or indirectly' involved in cross border smuggling

By Kirity Roy*  The Border Security Force (BSF) of India and the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) of Bangladesh met for 54th Director General level meeting at Dhaka, Bangladesh, on 5th to 9th March, 2024 to discuss on minimizing killings at border area, illegal intrusion, trafficking of drugs and other narcotics, smuggling of arms and ammunitions and other crimes at bordering areas. Further, the summit had an agenda to discuss on overall development in 150 yards area at both sides of the border and design an activity plan for the same.