UT looks the other way

Ritika Jha Palial

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 29

It seems that the UT Administration has surrendered to the denial by governments of Punjab and Haryana in clearing the pending payment of Rs 289.73 crores.

Even eight months after the governments (of Punjab and Haryana) blatantly refused to clear the dues of Rs 289.73 crore for the annual maintenance of GMSH-16, pending for the past 50 years, to Chandigarh, the Administration has not made any efforts to recover the amount.

In the last five years, the pendency has been pointed out five times in audit reports. The deficit is not directly reflected in the UT Health Department’s budget allocation but in the UT Administration’s treasury.

In separate letters sent to the UT Administration, in August, last year, both states had cited changes in the scenario of their employees seeking treatment at the GMSH-16 and also their inability to pay the outstanding amount and asking that it should be waived.

The Administration failed to make any efforts since then, while 25 per cent of patients’ strength at the GMSH-16 still comprises of government employees from Punjab and Haryana seeking free treatment. The daily OPD registration is close to 3,000 and admissions vary from 15 to 20 at the GMSH-16.

As per the Punjab Re-organisation Act of 1966, the governments of Punjab and Haryana were bound to together bear 50 per cent of the annual expenses incurred on the hospital in lieu of providing free of cost treatment to their employees and poor patients in 60:40 ratio, respectively.

Since 1967, the governments have not contributed their share against the hospital’s expenditure, to the UT Administration.

Surprisingly, the officers in the Chandigarh  Administration, representing Punjab and Haryana cadres, have failed to safeguard the interests of the Administration.

When contacted, Saravjeet Singh, UT Finance Secretary, a Punjab cadre officer, said, “I need to relook into the matter. From what I can recall, we wrote to them again after receiving their letters.”

Meanwhile, Anurag Aggarwal, Health Secretary, a Haryana cadre officer, who joined three months ago, said that
he was not yet aware of the issue.