A sum of Rupees 1.65 crore is stated to be outstanding against Government hospitals to Mahamaya Sales Corporation which has been providing diet for over 2000 patients. Super Specialty Hospital (SSH), CD Hospital (CDH), PSY Hospital (PSYH), Ayurvedic Hospital, Government Hospital (Gandhi Nagar) and Government Hospital, Sarwal are the affiliates of Government Medical College Jammu and supplies were made to patients hospitalized in these hospitals. The supplier firm has been writing to the Principal of Government Medical College to take urgent steps to clear the outstanding amount so that the employees are paid their salary regularly and supply of diet continues uninterrupted. But not finding any positive response, the firm has finally served the Principal with a notice that if its account is not settle it would not be in a position to continue the supply of diet to the said hospitals.
Representatives of the firm have said that they met with the Health Minister and apprised him of the situation whereupon he directed the Principal of GMC to expedite payment. Nobody knows the reason for withholding payment of outstanding amount to the firm. On the face of it, one can say it is inefficiency and incompetence on the part of the administrative staff for not regularizing payments. The Health Minister should order a probe into it since his own recommendation of making the payment has not been honoured by his own department. It means there is some serious snag somewhere which the Minister should know and remove. This is gross negligence and if actually supply of diet stops from November 3 as has been indicated by the firm in its letter, the patients and not the staff will have to bear the brunt. The situation will become more complicated thereafter. Therefore, our advice to the Health Department would be to expedite pending payments to the contractors and allow things to run smoothly.
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