PANJIM: Launching a scathing attack on the Government over its failure to provide medicines to patients at Goa Medical College and Hospital, former Health Minister and Valpoi Congress MLA Vishwajit Rane on Friday alleged a “massive scam” in issuing a joint tender for medicines in GMC and Directorate of Health Services (DHS).
Demanding a judicial inquiry by a retired judge, the MLA said that the tender document, issued with 13 corrigenda, was to favour one particular person at the cost of lives of thousands of people.
The Friday morning session of the Assembly saw heated arguments with the Opposition cornering Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Health Minister Francis D’Souza over delay in issuing the medicine tender and the reason behind issuing a joint tender.
“As the tendering process got delayed, since 2013, there is complete shortage of medicines in GMC. Even the High Court took cognizance of the matter and raised concerns,” Rane said informing the House how patients are forced to buy medicines from private pharmacies.
“The entire process to have a common tender for GMC and DHS is a massive scam. I want a judicial probe into the matter. The exercise is being carried out to suit some people,” the Valpoi MLA alleged.
Refusing to order any judicial probe into the matter, the chief minister defended his government’s decision to go for a common tender claiming that the decision was basically to get medicines at bulk and at reasonable rates. “The decision was taken when I was health minister and in consultation with then Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar. We realized that in the past all three entities were purchasing the medicines individually. Due to this, one medicine was being purchased at three different rates. We went for combined purchases to counter the price differences,” he said.
