Inquiry report on ‘inferior PPE kits’ at GMC Amritsar submitted to DC

AMRITSAR Four months after it was started, investigation into purchase of 2,000 Personal Protection Equipment (PPEs) at Government Medical College (GMC), Amritsar, has been completed. The scam had surfaced in April when doctors, nurses and other medical staff at the hospital refused to use 2,000 PPE kits that the hospital had bought, claiming that these were substandard and did not even include N-95 masks. They had also accused the authorities of paying around ₹41 lakh for the kits, which according to them, should not have cost more than ₹7 lakh.

Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (which is GMC’s hospital) medical superintendent Dr Raman Sharma ordethe kits. On April 24, the then Amritsar DC Shiv Dular Singh Dhillon had marked an inquiry into the matter to Pallavi Chaudhary, chief administrator, Amritsar Development Authority. After the Centre wrote to the Punjab government to complete the inquiry in a time-bound manner on June 23, on the request of Amritsar MP Gurjit Singh Aujla, the probe picked up pace and statements of 20 doctors were recorded.

On Monday, Pallavi said, “The statements of doctors and hospital authorities were recorded and the investigation has been completed. The report has been submitted to Amritsar deputy commissioner (DC) Gurpreet Singh on Monday.

Sources said hospital authorities and investigating officers are yet to receive testing and certification reports of these 2,000 kits from the Defence Research and Development Establishment (DRDE), an agency of the defence ministry, authorised to conduct laboratory testing of covid-19 kits.

“I have received the inquiry report and our team is analysing it. Strict action will be taken against people who have been found guilty,” the DC said.

IN APRIL, MEDICAL STAFF HAD ALLEGED THE PPE KITS PROVIDED TO THEM WERE SUBSTANDARD