Reports have alleged that the Assam government had placed four COVID-19-related emergency medical supply orders most likely without following proper process and at “exorbitant prices”
File image of Himanta Biswa Sarma. Twitter @himantabiswa
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has found himself running a gauntlet of fire as political parties from all corners are attacking the BJP leader and his government for an alleged scam in procuring PPE kits at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
The political attacks from the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party and TMC among others started after an investigative report by Delhi-based news website The Wire and Guwahati-based The Cross Current alleged the Assam government had placed four COVID-19 related emergency medical supply orders most likely without following proper process and at “exorbitant prices”.
What is the PPE scandal?
According to The Wire‘s report, which is based on a series of Right to Information (RTI) reports, the Assam government placed “four COVID-19 related emergency medical supply orders – most likely without following a tendering or quotation process – to three firms owned by chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife and his family’s business associate”.
The report reveals that even though JCB Industries, of which Sarma’s wife Riniki Bhuyan Sarma is the owner, has no history of supplying or producing medical equipment and safety gears, it bagged the urgent work order to supply 5,000 PPE kits from the state health ministry. Sarma was the state health minister at the time.
Not only JCB Industries but two other companies – GRD Pharmaceuticals and Meditime Healthcare – also received similar urgent supply orders. The two companies are owned by Sarma’s family’s business associate Ghanshyam Dhanuka.
The RTI replies revealed that the state health department had issued four urgent work orders between 18 March, 2020 and 23 March, 2020.
The exorbitant rates and unfulfilled orders
According to The Wire, the National Health Mission (NHM) issued an ‘urgent’ supply order to JCB Industries for 5,000 PPE kits at Rs 990 per piece on 18 March, 2020. On the same day, the NHM bought PPE kits at the rate of Rs 600 per piece from another Assam-based firm, NE Surgical Industries.
Dhanuka’s Meditime Healthcare was also issued two ‘urgent’ supply orders for PPE kits at Rs 990 – the amount sanctioned to JCB Industries.
As per the RTI replies, neither JCB Industries nor Meditime Healthcare could complete their urgent supply orders even after setting a much higher asking price for procurement of the PPE kits.
JCB Industries could supply only 1,485 PPE kits out of the 5,000 kits ordered by NHM. The order by NHM was cancelled on 4 April, 2020 and was conveyed to the firm on 6 April, 2020.
It cited “failure in supplying the life-saving cover-all protection kit in time, required for treating the Corona-infected patients”.
Even though Meditime Healthcare could not complete its existing order by the health department, the firm was still preferred for future urgent supply orders after the lockdown for PPE kits at Rs 1680 per kit – a price higher than even its previous quotation of Rs 990.
The order was given to Meditime Healthcare on the condition that it would deliver the kits at Assam Bhavan in New Delhi. The official documents showed that Dhanuka’s Meditime Healthcare went on to supply to the state health department 66,035 PPE kits at Rs 1,680 per piece between 23 March, 2020 and 11 April, 2020 – totalling a cost of Rs 10,84,85,850.
The aftermath
AAP leader Manish Sisodia on Saturday attacked the Assam Chief Minister for allegedly buying PPE kits at exorbitant prices.
Sisodia claimed that while the Assam government procured PPE kits at Rs 600 apiece from other companies, Sarma, who was then the state health minister, gave urgent supply orders to his ”wife’s firm, JCB Industries, and Meditime Healthcare, which belonged to a close associate,” at Rs 990 apiece “taking advantage of the COVID-19 emergency”.
According to India Today, the Trinamool Congress also slammed Sarma over the alleged PPE kit scam and demanded a Supreme Court monitored probe.
“…newspaper reports have surfaced carrying the response given by different governmental organizations to RTI queries on the supply of PPE kits during the pandemic in 2020 in Assam. According to the reports and investigation, a huge scam was reportedly committed with the involvement of the close relatives of the-then Health minister of Assam,” TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray said.
“This is a serious allegation which warrants an independent inquiry. Our party demands a special investigative team to be constituted by the Supreme Court of India, so that an independent investigation can be carried out to unearth the reality,” he added.
Opposition parties in Assam led by the Congress have also demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged supply scam.
Leader of Opposition Debabrata Saikia alleged that Sarma and his family had violated the “code of conduct of ministers”. He added that he had hoped that the Chief Minister would “exhibit some courage” and allow a probe.
The Assam government has, however, refuted all the allegations. Government spokesman Pijush Hazarika said there was no scam in the supply of PPE kits and no members of the chief minister’s family were involved in the supply of any material related to the COVID pandemic.
The allegations are ”false, imaginary, malicious and can be attributed as the handiwork of a certain section with vested interests,” Hazarika, who is also the state’s minister for water resources and information and public relations told reporters.
Sarma also refuted the allegations, saying his wife’s company gifted the PPE kits to the government and that Sisodia was “cherry-picking from half the documents”.