To
The Comptroller
and Auditor General of India Date-
28.5.21
New Delhi
Sub- Request to
undertaken CAG Audit of expenses made for
management of COVID Pandemic
situation by Govt. of Odisha
Sir
We the
Social activists, RTI Activists and
political organizations
spearheading campaign for
transparency and fight out corruption in Odisha, are
drawing attention of your
good office about huge
irregularities mismanagement of
fund sanctioned to
deal with COVID pandemic
and undue favour shown
to private hospitals
to give them maximum
benefit at the cost of interest
of the people of the state.
1. The outbreak of dreaded COVID pandemic
caused huge loss to the millions
of poor, landless labourers,
migrant labourers in terms of
loss of thousands of human life, unemployment
crisis, food insecurity etc. across
the country including Odisha. While the
lakhs of people are embattled with this dreaded
disease, the Govt. officials, private
hospitals , business people
are seen competing to gain
huge profit by
looting public money in name
of COVID management. Odisha is the
classic example of loot
of Govt. fund, undue
benefit to private hospitals, mismanagement of public fund by bureaucrats.
2. As per
RTI information, on 8th April 2020, Suresh Mohapatra, the
then Development Commissioner (
Presently working as Additional Chief Secretary) wrote a
letter to all the
Collectors under the
subject captioned “ Guidelines for
admission of patients and
setting claims for COVID
Hospitals” that the hospitals shall be reimbursed
on per bed day basis
irrespective of whether the bed
is occupied or not , wherever it is fixed as such ( Annexture-1). This letter was
designed with ulterior motive to
give huge profit from the public fund to Private
Hospitals in Odisha by calculating
bed charge separately from
other charges ( consumable item cost) .
3. It gave enough
opportunity to the private
hospitals declared as COVID
Hospital to mindlessly
charge for bed whether
that quantity of bed is really available in the hospital or not or
patients really treated or not.
4. The information provided by Odisha Mining Corporation
dt. 25.3.21 revealed that Kalinga
Institute of Medical Science(
KIMS), a hospital managed
by Kalinga Institute of Industrial technology ( KIIT), Patia,
Bhubaneswar of Achyut Samant , Lok Sabha MP of BJD party ( Biju Janata Dal) has
received total amount of Rs. 43.41 crore
out which bed
charge is Rs. 41.38 crore ( 96%) and
Rs. 2.05 crore for patients’
charge ( 4%). The details of payments
is as follows. (
OMC document attached
as annexture-2)
Payment Status
of KIMS COVID 19
Hospital
( Provided
by Odisha Mining Corporation
on 25.3.21 )
|
Month |
Advanced |
Fixed |
Fixed patient |
Total amount |
|
April , 20 |
12,35,26,000 |
4,49,58,000 |
18,76,250 |
4,68,34,250 |
|
May, 20 |
|
4,92,90,000 |
37,35,250 |
4,30,25,250 |
|
June, 20 |
|
4,77,00,000 |
1,47,70,500 |
6,24,70,500 |
|
July , 20 |
4,92,48,000 |
4,92,90,000 |
|
4,92,90,000 |
|
August , 20 |
|
4,92,90,000 |
|
4,92,90,000 |
|
September , 20 |
|
4,77,00,000 |
|
4,77,00,000 |
|
October , 20 |
|
4,92,90,000 |
|
4,92,90,000 |
|
Nov, 20 |
|
4,09,50,000 |
|
4,09,50,000 |
|
December, 20 |
|
3,53,40,000 |
|
3,53,40,000 |
|
Total |
17,27,74,000 |
41,38,08,000 |
2,03,82,000 |
43,41,90,000 |
5. To help
this Hospital for its own business expansion ,
On 7.4.20 ( just within couple
of days of declaration of COVID lockdown), OMC released advance
money 12,35,26,000 to KIMS, Patia, Bhubaneswar to open its
own hospital branches in
three districts i.e., Bolangir, Kalahandi, Mayurbhanj. This is no doubt a calculated decision to favour private hospital
for its profiteering business
in the name of COVID
management.
6. Similarly,
Sum Hospital, Bhubaneswar another
Private Hospital has been
provided crores of rupees
against bed charge
and patients’ charge
separately by Mahanadi
Coalfields Limited. Bed
charge ( Rs.3000 per General bed and
Rs. 5000 per ICU bed ) was
consciously separated from
patients’ charge ( consumable items) and separately calculated
in order to give huge
benefit to SUM Hospital. ( Annexture-3).
7. Like
KIMS Hospital, other private
hospitals like Aditya Aswini Hospital, Aswini COVID Hospital, Hightech COVID
hospital, Tata Hospital , Berhampur
are having nexus with
Odisha bureaucracy and
looted public money in the name of
providing treatment to
COVID patients.
8. As per RTI
information, Odisha Medical
Corporation has already
utilized Rs. 477.44 crore
sanctioned from SDRF( State
Disaster Response Fund )
for purchase of Mask, PPE Kit, ventilator and other essential equipment(Annexture-4). When RTI query was made
seeking copy of the
purchasing order, details of payments and utilization of PPE Kit, ventilator, OSMCL is
not providing any information since last
six months. ( Annexture-5).
9. The opposition
political parties have also exposed
huge irregularities and corruption in procurement of PPE
Kit, Mask, Ventilator and demanded
inquiry into it ( Annexture-6).
10.RTI was also
filed in the office
of Collector, Ganjam , a
district of highest concentration
of COVID patients and COVID
deaths seeking information about details of
fund sanctioned and utilized to deal with
COVID pandemic. The
information provided on 15.4.21
reveals that Out of total amount sanctioned
Rs. 47 crore , an UC has been
submitted for Rs.23 crore till yet (Annexture-7). There
is huge corruption and
misappropriation of Govt. fund in the
management of TMC ( Temporary
Medical camp) by Gram Panchayats and Blocks
which has been highlighted
in local media.
11.The irregularities and mismanagement of COVID Fund
is noticed in each and
every block and district offices which is
reported in media. Though
huge money is sanctioned
for COVID management, it is not being
monitored by any officers. Lack of monitoring
and transparency has
resulted in loot of public
money by officials and false
and forged docuemnts has been prepared to show the
utilization of fund.
12.As
we understand, CAG audit on various issues starting
from audit of allotment
of land in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, allotment of houses
under Rural Housing scheme, mismanagement on
OMFED and Odisha State Cooperative Bank etc. has
been eye-opener for all of us. CAG Audit report has exposed wrongdoings, violation of Got. Rules and
regularities and irregularities in Govt. scheme and programme.
So, keeping it in
view, we humbly request your
good office to undertake
audit of the
fund allocated and utilized for COVID
pandemic in the greater
interest of the state
of Odisha.
Copy to : ( a) Secretary , Ministry of
Home Affairs, New Delhi
( b )
Secretary, National Disaster Management
Authority, New Delhi
Thanking you
Yours sincerely
Pradip Pradhan Girija
Prasad Mohanty, Advocate
State Convener Working
President, Odisha Pragati Dal
Odisha Soochana Adhikar
Abhijan At/Post/Dist-Dhenkanal,
Odisha
Plot No-S-111, Maitree Vihar M-9439120908
Post-Rail Vihar,
Bhubaneswar-751023 ,Odisha
M-9937843482
Surendra Panigrahi Sudhir Mohanty, Advocate
State President , Bharatiya Bikash Parishad Secretary, Odisha Durniti
Sangharsh Manch
Bank Colony, 1st
Lane, Radio station Road 695,Nageswar Tangi, Old Tow
Bhubaneswar
Berhampur, Ganjam- 760001,
Odisha M-9861063290
M- 8917346822
Pradip Routray Sanjukta Panigrahi
Working President , Kalinga National Front Secretary, United
Parents’ Association Forum
H.O- At-Parabil,
post-Kandarpur Plot
No.-396/4306, Kanak Durga Nagar
Dist-Cuttack, Odisha-754100 Chandrasekhar
Pur,Bhuaneswar-22
M- 8144808909 M-9337903294
