Vigilance branch of the Dept of Medical Education and Research unearths misappropriation in the purchase of books and medical journals since 1999

By -Tanaji Khot

A major scam in the purchase of books and medical journals at the prestigious B J Medical College’s (BJMC’s) central library has been exposed following a recent inspection by the vigilance branch of the Department of Medical Education and Research which has uncovered misappropriation of over Rs 4 crore.

The vigilance branch investigation has revealed that the library administration flouted every norm set by the Good Office Committee (GOC), New Delhi while making these purchases.

The purchase of books and journals was not done as per the norms set by the GOC

The inspection report came to the conclusion that the purchase of the medical journals was not done in accordance with the rules but on the basis of a “mutual understanding” arrived between librarian R K Jadhav and CEO T M Lakade, the publisher and the supplier.

The audit report has also indicted the supplier, Doctors Library (India), for cheating the government and the educational loss caused to the student of the medical college and recommended legal action against them.

According to GOC norms, a supplier has to furnish the order given to any international publisher and also proof of money transfer to the latter like bank remittance, customer ID and subscription number.

In BJMC’s case, Doctors Library has not furnished this proofs since 1999. The audit report recommends blacklisting of Doctors Library (India) and recovery of Rs 34, 71,562, which was supposed to be paid to Globe Publication immediately.

If they fail to reimburse the same, according to the auditors. the entire amount of over Rs 4 crore should be recovered from Doctors Library.

The report also holds librarian R K Jadhav responsible for failing to recover all documents from the supplier on time. His act suggests deliberate negligence, the report claims, as he did not verify whether all journals were delivered on the stipulated time or not and the cost of the journals was accurate.

Even though the supplier's was not up to the standard, Jadhav mentioned It as satisfactory and repeatedly recommended the renewal of his annual contract. This established that Jadhav protected the supplier's interest resulting in a huge loss to the government.

T M Lakade, BJMC's chief administrative officer, was also held guilty for the releasing the payments of these purchases and violating several financial guidelines. He too is reported to have secured the supplier's interest and duped the state.

The report has expressed fears that an attempt to destroy the records or them going missing cannot be ruled out as Lakde was at the helm in 1999 when this misappropriation and corruption took place.