General impression among people is that most of the new schemes and projects announced by the Government with much fanfare do not materialise and end in smoke at the end of the day. Why is this negative impression allowed to grow and what should be done to dispel doubts that the Government is not interested in pushing the schemes? We understand that in democratic culture, things move at snail’s pace. Yes democracy is a slow process but not to the extent of negation of a proposal. One reason by common understanding is that there is undue and unending interference by politicos in the administration of the State. Democracy demands high level of moral and ideological handling of issues and situations. Politicians usually do not maintain those standards. We do not know what possible methods could be evolved to minimize the influence and interference of political class in our administrative business.
We are focussing on the subject of drug procurement procedure in the State Health Department. The Department is supposed to provide some specified drugs to the State hospitals which are to be provided to the patients on the recommendations of the doctors concerned. This item has a huge budget. The practice so far adopted is that tenders are floated giving specifications and the quantities required in each case. The successful tender meaning the one which agrees to supply on the lowest cost is naturally approved. But last year there surfaced the spurious drug scam in Government hospitals and after testing various drugs from recognized laboratories these were found spurious. Under mounting public and political pressure the Government announced constitution of J&K Medical Supplies Corporation as the sole agency to procure and supply drugs machinery and medical equipment to Government hospitals. This was considered a very positive step as it would put an end to corruption and mismanagement of drug and machinery procurement.
Thus far it was all right. But the problem appeared when various departments connected with Health Services were asked to pass on 75 per cent of their allocated budget for purchase of drugs to the Corporation. They did not oblige and the Government felt helpless in pushing the matter further. But the latest reports suggest that the Health Department has caved in and allowed that the orders of passing on the part of budget to the Corporation could be deferred till 2015. Chairing the 2nd meeting of the J&K Medical Supplies Corporation, the Chief Minister had emphasized that all concerned departments should abide by the instructions and pass on the budget to the Corporation for efficient system of procuring drugs. These entreaties had no effect and those not interested in letting the Corporation begin its work in right earnest are creating hurdles in the way. Actually there seems a nexus between suppliers and consumers. Many reports have come in of this nexus at work. The enquiry reports about the supply of spurious drugs have never been made public. So the miscreants are getting chance to go ahead pursuing their selfish interests. Medical authorities have said that there is much political interference and that is one of the reasons why the project of procuring drugs and equipment through Corporation has not been able to make any headway.
With the exposing of supply of spurious drugs in Government hospitals, it has come to public gaze that there is a long standing nexus between the contractors, drug manufacturers and the consumers meaning the Government health centres and hospitals. The nexus is widespread and entrenched. It is powerful and has the potential to scuttle the very schemes of the Government to change the system. For a long time complaints have been regularly coming in from patients that they are not either provided with drugs in hospitals or the drugs given are substandard and hence ineffective. In either case it is cruel and inhuman to play with the lives of the patients.
Constituting the Medical Supplies Corporation is a very good idea but it has to be made functional. It will not serve any purpose if the Corporation is not provided with necessary wherewithal. In future the Planning Department can reduce the budget of concerned departments and branches and divert these to the Corporation direct. This will ensure expeditious functioning of the Corporation fulfilling the aspirations of the Government and the beneficiaries.
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