Days after BJP leader Vijender Gupta wrote to Chief Minsiter Arvind Kejriwal demanding an investigation in the purchase of 125 turbine-based Intensive Care Unit (ICU) ventilators for Rs 9 crore, the matter was yet again raised by the opposition leaders in the Delhi Assembly on Tuesday.
The ventilators were bought for Delhi government hospitals, including Lok Nayak, GB Pant, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, Deep Chand Bandhu, and Baba Saheb Ambedkar. BJP MLA OP Sharma raised the issue during the assembly session alleging, "the multi-crore ventilators bought for the government hospitals is a scam. There is no adequate staff to operate them. It should be thouroughly probed."
On August 1, DNA had reported that as many as 125 new ventilators purchased for Delhi government hospitals for Rs 9 crore may risk lives of several patients as a power cut could lead to the snapping of oxygen. According to an audit report of Delhi government accessed by this newspaper, if any government hospital in the Capital faces a power cut, and the generators took a gap to function, these ventilators will not be able to provide critical oxygen supply to the patients.
Reacting on DNA's report, Gupta had written a letter to Kejriwal on August 2 saying,"Instead of saving lives in the ICU, they [the government] have put the lives of patients at great risk. Turbine-based ICU ventilators are not only technically flawed but most of the hospitals are struggling with manpower to operationalise them. No efforts have been made to recruit staff to run these ventilators."
Kejriwal had tweeted, on December 12 in 2016, saying that 125 new ventilators will be installed in the government hospitals against the demand of 80. The ventilators were then installed in the above-mentioned hospitals.
The audit report said that the bids evaluation committee, as well as the director of CPA, did not consider the observations made by the DEAN, MAMC and placed the order of supply of the ventilators. It further explained that the ventilators for which the bidders have offered to supply the external UPS (battery back-up) may be used as an alternative. According to the health officials, the compressor-based ventilators, for which bidders have offered to supply the external UPS, may be an alternation.
"The observations made by the MAMC were not recorded in the file and approval of the Special Purchase Committee was obtained, compromising the lives of patients by ignoring the valuable suggestions given by the committee," the report stated.
ANOTHER SCAM
The ventilators were bought for Delhi government hospitals, including Lok Nayak, GB Pant, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, Deep Chand Bandhu, and Baba Saheb Ambedkar. BJP MLA OP Sharma raised the issue during the assembly session alleging, “the multi-crore ventilators bought for the government hospitals is a scam.”
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