Avoidable Expenditure on Water Supply Contract for District Hospitals in Mizoram
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Directorate of Hospital and Medical Education (DHME), Health and Family Welfare Department, Government of Mizoram (GoM), Aizawl entered (May and December 2012) into Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with a firm M/s Intergen Energy Limited (IGEL), New Delhi for installation of renewable energy and water treatment plant to supply water at nine Hospitals which include Referral Hospital, Falkawn and all eight District Hospitals of Mizoram. This was based on the suo-moto proposal submitted (February 2012) by the firm to GoM, for installation of Water Treatment Plant with solar power water pumping system to supply water on the basis of BOOT at the nine Hospitals. Audit observed that all Hospitals were getting water supplies on priority from Public Health Engineering (PHE) Department and there were no insufficiency in supply of water to the Hospitals reported, before or during the period of MoU with IGEL. Hence, engagement of IGEL was arbitrary and proposal of the firm was agreed to by the Department without ascertaining the actual need for water supply in the Hospital. Thus, expenditure of ₹ 0.50 crore for installation of Water Treatment Plants in five Hospitals and ₹ 4.80 crore on buy-back MoU in June 2019 totalling ₹ 5.30 crore was avoidable as there was no scarcity of water in the Hospitals prior to signing of agreement with the firm. Hospitals also did not report any issue in water supply during the stoppage of operation of the firm. Hence, there was a total avoidable expenditure of ₹ 5.30 crore in addition to committed liability of ₹ 4.20 crore against the balance payable on MoU on buy-back of equipment and water supplied. Further, Department, was supposed to terminate the MoUs on failure of IGEL to supply the required volume of water but entered into an unnecessary buy-back agreement.