16 fake doctors arrested in Surat, one allegedly running clinics for 33 years
Surat: Sixteen fake doctors were arrested in Surat for allegedly practising medicine without valid qualifications after a joint operation by the Special Operations Group (SOG) and the district health department in the Pandesara industrial area exposed the unauthorised use of allopathic medicines, injections and intravenous (IV) fluids at clinics.
The raids were conducted early Wednesday following a tip-off that unqualified practitioners were treating patients, including migrant labourers, in the area. Police first sent decoy patients to suspected clinics to verify the information before carrying out simultaneous inspections at 16 establishments.
Officials found patients receiving treatment in unhygienic conditions, with some being administered glucose drips while lying on ordinary wooden cots. Medicines, disposable plastic bags and medical waste were reportedly scattered around the premises, raising concerns about infection control and patient safety.
Investigators found that the accused were prescribing or administering allopathic medicines, including painkillers and antibiotics, and giving glucose drips to patients with common complaints such as fever and malaria, despite allegedly lacking the required medical qualifications.
According to police, several of those arrested had previously worked as compounders or assistants in hospitals in their home states before moving to Surat and setting up clinics. Many migrant workers live in the industrial area's labour settlements, where the clinics were operating.
The investigation also uncovered allegations of prolonged unauthorised practice. Three of the accused had reportedly faced earlier action for practising medicine without the required qualifications. One of them was allegedly running a clinic for around 24 years, while another had reportedly been practising for nearly three decades.
The most shocking detail concerns the operator of Free Seva Sadan, who had only passed Class 10 but had allegedly been running clinics at various locations for the past 33 years.
Other individuals arrested during the operation included the operators of Bharat Clinic, Probir Clinic, Navdeep Clinic, Pratima Clinic and Gurukripa Clinic, along with a person who ran an unnamed clinic in Ranchhod Nagar, police said, according to the Daily.
Materials worth Rs 1,82,444, including allopathic medicines, injections, cough syrups, and various medical instruments, have been seized during the operation. A case has been registered against all the accused at the Pandesara police station, ETV Bharat reported.
The district health department is also preparing separate proceedings under the Clinical Establishments Act, officials said.
