Missing medical equipment at 64 West Bengal health facilities, doctors' body seeks probe
Kolkata: The West Bengal Association of Health Service Doctors has urged the state health department to order an inquiry into reports of missing medical equipment and machinery from 64 healthcare facilities across the state.
In a representation to state Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee, the association raised concerns over a departmental letter seeking action in connection with the missing equipment.
According to PTI, the association said it supported “protection of public property and action against proven wrongdoing”, but argued that initiating criminal proceedings or fixing personal liability without a comprehensive preliminary inquiry would be “unjustified and procedurally inappropriate”.
Also Read:West Bengal Health Department probes 5 doctors over alleged fake degrees
The association sought an investigation into whether the equipment had been procured and supplied “according to approved requirements and allocations” and whether proper handover and asset-registration procedures had been followed.
According to sources, essential components, including batteries and wiring boxes, as well as high-value pandemic-era equipment such as ventilators and BiPAP machines, were reported missing or stolen across 12 districts.
The affected facilities comprise 50 sub-centres, 13 Block Public Health Units and one primary health centre, sources said.
The association also called for scrutiny of storage and security arrangements at the facilities concerned, including whether adequate infrastructure and security were available and whether designated custodians had the necessary authority and resources.
It further sought an examination of whether medical officers and facility heads had been properly informed about their responsibilities regarding the delivery, custody, installation and operation of the equipment.
The doctors' body also said the actual status of the equipment should also be ascertained, including “whether items had been transferred, relocated, installed, repaired, replaced or withdrawn, and whether the reported discrepancies were due to record-keeping failures or actual loss”.
It stressed that the officials concerned should be given an opportunity to explain the circumstances before responsibility was fixed.
The association called for a comprehensive independent audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), wherever legally applicable, of relevant public funds, including procurement, expenditure, distribution and utilisation “under the XV Finance Commission Health Grants and any PM CARES-related expenditure”.
It further demanded an independent, time-bound investigation into the reported missing equipment at all 64 facilities.
The association further urged the department to ensure that no medical officer was held personally liable without documented responsibility and evidence of negligence or other wrongdoing, and sought measures to make procurement and utilisation records publicly auditable.
The representation was signed by Dr Utpal Bandopadhyay, general secretary of the association.
Earlier this week, the state health department ordered local authorities to file police complaints over missing COVID-19-era medical equipment and components across 64 state health centres.
Also Read:West Bengal mulls private medical college partnership with block primary health centres
