Ultrasonography machines to be seized from non-functional centres

The health department will seize all ultrasonography machines lying unused at the non-functional centres across the state.

The Pre-Conception and PreNatal Diagnostic Technique (PCPNDT) state appropriate authority and National Health Mission (NHM) chief, Naveen Jain, on Friday said that the letter has been issued to all district appropriate and sub-divisional appropriate authorities to check all non-functional sonography centres and seize sonography machines. These machines will be kept at the office of Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) at the district or in a separate godown.

He said that so far the ultrasound machines, at the non-functional centres, were sealed but were allowed to be kept at the centre (on the request of the centre owner). The machines were also kept at the CMHO or godown, but now all sealed ultrasonography machines will be seized and will be with the government.

Jain has asked all officials concerned to submit a compliance report of the action taken within a month. It is to be mentioned that the state has 3,086 registered ultrasonography centres, of which 2,862 are in the private sector and 224 in the government sector. Of these 1,383 centres are nonfunctional and remaining 1,703 centres are functional. Most of the non-functional centres are in the private sector.

The decision to seize unused machines was taken after sex determination tests were conducted at a non-functional centre at Bhinmal town in Jalore district on Thursday evening.

“A decoy operation was conducted, under the leadership of PCPNDT project director Shilpa Choudhary on Thursday, at the Life Line Hospital in Bhinmal. Two people were arrested for conducting sex determination tests and the ultrasonography machine was also seized,” said Jain.

Jain said that Dr Gangaram Prajapati (65), a resident of Firojpura (Palanpur) in Gujarat, and the centre owner Mukesh Bapna (50), a Bhinmal resident, were arrested.

The ultrasonography centre at the Life Line Hospital was nonfunctional for some time and the machine was sealed by the health department. On the approval of Bapna, Dr Prajapati was conducting sex determination tests.

JAIPUR: THE DECISION TO SEIZE UNUSED MACHINES WAS TAKEN AFTER SEX DETERMINATION TESTS WERE CONDUCTED AT A NONFUNCTIONAL CENTRE AT BHINMAL