Team Herald
PANJIM: Following allegations of scam by Congress MLAs Alexio Reginaldo Lourenco and Isidore Fernandes, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has kept on hold approval to Manipal Hospital for cadaveric transplants.
After the inspection on Friday, the Appropriate Authority members signed the report which automatically paved the way for granting the hospital a registration for conducting kidney transplants.
However, within hours the Congress Party got the sniff of it and made charges that granting such permission is a huge scam.
Clarifying his stand, Vishwajit said that he has asked the Health Secretary to keep the Appropriate Authority decision on hold.
“The allegations made by Congress are serious and hence I have asked the Health secretary to move the file to the government and not to approve the minutes of Appropriate Authority inspection or further process it till the file comes to me and a detailed discussion is held between me and the Secretary Health,” Vishwajit told Herald in a telephonic conversation.
He said that he has also directed Health Secretary Sudhir Mahajan not to issue any permission to Manipal Hospital.
“No permissions will be given to the Manipal Hospital till I am convinced that the allegations made are not true,” he said adding, “the decision is in public interest. I have faith in the Health Secretary and the Appropriate Authority but when the allegations are made by somebody you have to be extra cautious.”
“Finally, I have to answer the Opposition in the Assembly,” he said.
When pointed out that the patients are suffering as even GMC does not have the transplant facility, “I am here only for last three months. The Nephrologist Dr J P Tiwari has been granted leave for two years without any substitute and now I am trying to get, at least, one (Nephrologist) on contract basis.”
The government has changed three committees since the Manipal hospital submitted its proposal with respect to kidney transplant to the Directorate of Health services in July last year.
The fourth, and present, committee was constituted only last month.
Speaking to Herald, Congress MLA Reginaldo Lourenco said that the Appropriate Authority’s decision is a huge scam.
“As it is, this hospital has been fleecing the patients wherein huge amounts of money are being charged for ICU and other facilities,” Reginaldo said.
Reginaldo alleged that the Health Secretary has been strongly in favour of granting permission to this hospital as the government has changed four committees so far only on this issue.
“The minister does not know what is happening; the bureaucrats are taking him for a ride,” Reginaldo said and asked, “if the experts feel the hospital does not have facilities for transplants, who is the Secretary to pressurise them?”
