CMC outsourcing manpower without tender for five years!  

CUTTACK:  Even as a fake employee scam had rocked the Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) a decade earlier, the civic body seems to have derived no lessons from it. The Corporation is now being questioned for allegedly showing undue favour to two outsourcing agencies for availing manpower for different municipal works by granting them the job without following laid government norms like floating of tender.

The civic body is paying around Rs 10 crore per annum to the two agencies in lieu of supply of manpower since 2016. As per norms, CMC is required to invite quotations from outsourcing agencies for engagement of manpower through open tender process. The allotment of work to the selected agency must be done in a transparent manner while adhering to guidelines set by the government. 

However, deviating from the rule the civic body has engaged the two agencies for availing highly skilled, skilled and unskilled workers for years.  As per records, CMC had paid Rs 9.71 crore to the agencies in 2019-20. While one of them was paid Rs 5.56 crore, the other was given Rs 4.15 crore. It is alleged that one of the agencies is owned by a relative of an employee of the civic body. The file for floating tender for engaging outsourcing agencies in 2019 has not yet been processed. 

What’s worse is that the civic body’s establishment section has no information on the staff including sanitary workers, sweepers, motor pump operators, clerks and computer operators provided by the agencies. It is alleged that more workers than required have been engaged for the benefit of the agencies. The workers are not even being given mandatory benefits like EPF and ESI by the agencies. 

One of the staff engaged with the civic body on condition of anonymity said if the workers dare raise their voice against the injustice meted out to them, they are threatened and told they will be terminated. The agencies have been accused of not renewing the contracts of the workers and delaying their payments. 
Some workers had brought the irregularities to the notice of RDC, Central Range following which the CMC was directed to conduct a probe into the matter. But, no investigation has yet been carried out. 

A senior official of CMC’s establishment section said the number of staff required by different wings of the civic body is being assessed. Once the assessment is done, steps will be taken to invite tender for engaging manpower from eligible outsourcing agencies. Commissioner Ananya Das did not respond to attempts for getting CMC’s official explanation on the issue. 

SCB’s CT scan machines go defunct again

Cuttack: With the two CT scan machines in the Radiology department of SCB Medical College and Hospital (MCH) going out of order again, diagnostic tests in the premier health care institute of Odisha have taken a hit. The machines which had broken down in December last year were repaired and restored in January after much hue and cry. However, after functioning for a few days, they developed snags again and have been lying defunct for the last six days.

Poor patients are being forced to shell out more money as the private diagnostic centres charge exorbitant rates which range from Rs 2,000 to Rs 7,000 towards CT scan depending on the nature of tests. Whereas in SCB MCH, CT Scan was done free of cost.Patients, on the other hand, raised questions on quality of the CT scan machines that are becoming defunct frequently. They alleged that owing to an unholy nexus between hospital staff and proprietors of private diagnostic facilities, the machines of the Radiology department are wilfully rendered defunct frequently. HoD of Radiology department Sasmita Parida said that steps are being taken for repair of the machines.