The Telangana High Court on Wednesday directed the State government to initiate action against diet contractor of Niloufer children hospital, Koduri Suresh Babu, within two weeks.
A Bench of Chief Justice Raghavendra Singh Chauhan and Justice B. Vijaysen Reddy instructed the Special Chief Secretary of Medical and Health department that the action should be strictly in accordance with law. Details of the action taken in the matter should be informed to the court by September 16, the Bench said.
The Bench passed the order in a PIL petition filed by Bhagawanth Rao of Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi seeking an inquiry into the alleged misappropriation of funds by the diet contractor. The CJ observed that the report submitted by Niloufer hospital superintendent said that the diet contractor drew excess bills and resorted to misappropriation of funds.
Referring to the inquiry report findings, the Bench said that it was surprising that the government decided to entrust the diet supply works of Gandhi Hospital and Chest Hospital at Erragadda to Mr. Suresh Babu. The inquiry report was still pending for action by the government against the contractor, the Bench said.
According to the report, there was huge difference between the number of diet indents and the entries in the diet supply register. Duplication of diet bills for the same patient was noticed. Random observation confirmed manipulation and tampering of diet numbers in indent slips by the diet contractor, the report presented before the court said.
An excess of inpatient diet bills to the tune of ₹50,000 per ward per month were drawn by the diet contractor. The diet contractor’s counsel and former Advocate General of Andhra Pradesh Dammalapati Srinivas said action against Mr. Suresh Babu should be in accordance with law. He appealed to the court not to declare the diet contractor as the accused as the matter was still being heard and not adjudicated.