AAP, BJP face-off over staff shortage in govt hospitals

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 4
Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj today accused Lieutenant Governor (L-G) VK Saxena of spreading falsehoods and ignoring the acute shortage of medical personnel in the Delhi Government hospitals.
He said despite persistent letters from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and himself, critical vacancies remain unfilled and essential medical equipment remains unused due to the shortage of radiologists. Citing the High Court’s Dr SK Sarin Committee report, he added the immediate need for contractual staffing had also been ignored.

‘Deliberate conspiracy’
Due to the severe shortage of doctors, nurses, paramedical staff, lab technicians and OT technicians in Delhi hospitals, poor people are unable to receive adequate and complete treatment, and this is being done deliberately under a conspiracy. — Saurabh Bharadwaj, Health Minister

Bharadwaj condemned the L-G’s inaction as a grave failure, resulting in worsening health conditions for countless patients. “Due to the severe shortage of doctors, nurses, paramedical staff, lab technicians and OT technicians in Delhi hospitals, poor people are unable to receive adequate and complete treatment, and this is being done deliberately under a conspiracy,” Bharadwaj added.
Since the Services Department is directly under the L-G, he said the responsibility of filling the vacant posts in the government hospitals falls on the L-G. The Health Minister presented to mediapersons letters that he had written to the L-G since March 23, informing him of these vacancies.
In a letter to the L-G on June 6, Bharadwaj wrote about recruiting doctors through the UPSC. “I informed the L-G that 30 per cent of doctor positions, 20 per cent of nurse positions and 30 per cent of pharmacist positions, as well as about 1,658 posts for OT technicians, lab technicians, postmortem technicians and others are lying vacant. Expensive equipment and operation theatres in hospitals are unused because of a lack of staff and doctors, preventing people from getting the surgeries they need,” he said.
He added that on July 26, he again wrote to the L-G, requesting that, given the lengthy process of recruiting doctors through UPSC, doctors should be hired on a contract basis for government hospitals as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva questioned Bharadwaj, asking him to explain why he appointed OP Mishra, an officer embroiled in several corruption investigations, as his secretary. “Mishra is accused of involvement in a land scam and a parking scam during his tenure at the New Delhi Municipal Council, both of which are currently under CBI investigation,” he said. Sachdeva also pointed out that Dr RN Das, OSD in the Health Department, is involved in multiple investigations, has been suspended, and faces accusations of issuing licences to substandard nursing homes.