Bengaluru: The opposition Congress is already on the warpath on the subject of Corruption in the use of COVID19 funds. A new scandal has possibly been prevented with the scrapping of the 800 a day Bed set rental contracts to supply the COVID19 Care Center (CCC) at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre and others planned. The Yeddyurappa government decided on Monday to procure the beds directly at around 7000 or less per bed based on Negotiation.
Apparently the CM was not in the loop when the BBMP took the decision. A report in the TOI apparently prompted a government review. Yelahanka MLA SR Vishwanath, under whose assembly constituency BIEC falls supported the decision.”The CM has avoided embarrassment to the government by taking the right decision at the right time,” he said.
The CM told the review meet that the beds can be used for other government institutions:
The decision came as a face-saver for the BSY administration, a point admitted by his political secretary and “If we purchase these beds, they won’t go waste as they can later be distributed to government hostels or hospitals,’’ the CM reportedly told officials at the special task force meeting called to discuss the issue.
The TOI reports that the BBMP commissioner BH Anil Kumar has said that a meeting has also been convened by the CM with the contractors to discuss and finalize the rates to buy the bed-sets. A special team of KAS officers and three engineers has been formed to negotiate and arrive at the cost. The CM has asked officials to purchase the bed-sets for not.
Meanwhile, the morgues are full as Govt. rule requires a health inspector’s signature for release
Once a confirmed COVID19 patient, you can’t leave the hospital for your final rites even if you are dead without the signature of the Local Ward Health inspector! He has to sign off on the release form.
TOI reports Doctors at mortuaries saying that this is causing a delay of at least 24 hours since relatives rarely know the name of their ward, leave alone contact details of the health inspector. Some hospitals even end up calling the police to sort out the mess. It so happens that Patients are not from the same ward in which the Hospital is located and they have no idea who their corporator is, let alone their health inspector!
This is what Dr. Varghese PS of St John’s Hospital told the TOI.“Contacting the BBMP health inspector concerned and getting him or her to sign our registry is now an additional task for hospitals,”. The hospital had two cases waiting for the BBMP health inspector. “No address proof document carries the ward name or number and often the deceased’s address proof document and his or her actual residence have no connection.”
Dr. C Nagaraja, director, Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases, said the rule is causing “all sorts” of delays: “We have had cases where we had to wait for 2-3 days to release the body,” he said.
Dr. R Ravindra, who runs Suguna Hospital, in Rajajinagar, said it’s unclear what purpose the rule serves since all data required for Covid-19 surveillance is uploaded on websites of Karnataka Private Medical Establishment and Public Health Information and Epidemiological Cell of BBMP. Moreover, he said, BBMP inspectors have told hospitals not to ring them before 9 am, which means in some cases they have to wait till the next morning to even bring death to the notice of BBMP.
But officials have a different version – Data is king and must be recorded for further action and statistics they say. The BBMP’s health department is tasked with this in Bengaluru they say.
Dr. KV Satish, professor of forensic medicine, Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI), told the TOI: “Four documents are needed: A declaration by a family member establishing the relationship with the dead patient; a copy of an identity card of the deceased person; Form 4 which is the cause of death certificate issued by the hospital, and the officer’s signature as an acknowledgment in the patient’s relative’s declaration letter.”
In cases where the patient is from another district, hospital authorities alert district officials concerned through e-communications.
