Maharashtra: Norms flouted in multi-crore drug purchase

CM Fadnavis confirmed that he had received Sahai’s report. Assigning the responsibility for a “detailed probe” to Sahai again, he said, “We have asked him to submit a final report in the matter.”

Rs 40.10-crore contracts for medicine supplies for the urban poor under the Centre’s National Health Mission (NHM) were awarded in “thorough violation” of the government’s own norms, a high-level inquiry committee set up by the Maharashtra government has found. The committee has sought a wider probe to fix accountability in the matter.

On April 12, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis appointed a one-man committee under Additional Chief Secretary Dr Bhagwan Sahai to probe accusations of irregularities in purchase of medicines in 2014-15 by the Directorate of Health Services (DHS) for supply to primary and secondary healthcare facilities, and Maharashtra Mission Director of the NHM for free supplies to municipalities and cantonments.

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According to official records reviewed by this newspaper, DHS had first issued tenders for purchase of 424 medicines and consumables, collectively worth Rs 297 crore, for healthcare facilities on May 29, 2014, whereas a separate consignment of 201 medicines, totalling Rs 40.10 crore, was purchased on March 31, 2015 for drug supplies to municipalities and cantonments.

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While the Opposition had alleged discrepancies in both the purchases, the Sahai committee’s report, which was recently submitted to the CM, has found nothing incriminating in the case of the Rs 297-crore purchase for healthcare centres, while finding serious violations in the second purchase.

The Indian Express has reviewed the contents of the committee’s report. Questioning the validity of the method employed to buy NHM medicines, the report states, “The purchase (of over Rs 40 crore) was made without floating tenders. This is in complete contravention of a December 18, 2014, state government order, which makes e-tendering compulsory for all purchases above Rs 3 lakh.

“It is even more objectionable that the purchases were made by placing ‘repeat orders’ to the same contractors appointed previously for medicine supplies to healthcare centres.”

The committee has sought a detailed probe.

Fadnavis confirmed that he had received Sahai’s report. Assigning the responsibility for a “detailed probe” to Sahai again, he said, “We have asked him to submit a final report in the matter.”

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Sources said the BJP-led government might want to bide time on the controversy since it pertained to a department — public health — controlled by ally Shiv Sena.

Public Health Minister Deepak Sawant has shied away from the controversy, having earlier said that he had no role in the purchases. “It was a Central Purchase Committee (CPC), which is headed by Principal Secretary (Public Health) Sujata Saunik, and the then Mission Director Idzes Kundan, who had authorised the purchase,” he had said when a query was raised during the budget session of Assembly.

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