State Health Department yet again comes under purview of RTI

State Health Department yet again comes under purview of RTI
Allied Source

State Health Department

16 Sep, Gangtok: The State Health Department has once more come under the RADAR of Sikim RTI Forum and India Against Corruption Sikkim chapter IACS in a bizarre new issue of renting a government infrastructure to a profit earning business firm in the heart of the town Gangtok. According to the release, it state that the RTI was filed seeking an information from the State Health Department by them is in accordance to a several complaints which had been coming from the concerned citizens and intellectuals. In the RTI it had asked for details of information associated with the operation of Radiant Medical Shop in the STNM Hospital premise. The written reply to the RTI done by forum from the State Health Department has erupted astonishing facts about the existence of shop. The shop according o the RTI replied by Department states that it has been allotted to Mr Sanjay Kumar Bansal in 1991 without any agreement that is 20 years back; even more surprising thing is that the Department is generating Rs 44 per day from said shop as rental which makes Rs 1,296 per month. Furthermore the RTI replied that no any NIT was done in any media since then.
The forum has expressed its deep concern over the overwhelming response of the Department in connection to the matter and has appealed to the authority for taking necessary steps to ensure that such things of renting governmental property may be carried out in transparent and proper method.
Forum highly anticipates the government’s strategic plans like CATCH in providing a better medical facilities and services to the citizens with its contagious programmes every time however this issue also should be resolved and the said premise be used for better purpose for the helpless & needy citizens. Forum has further states that if the government may seek for some ideas they are ready to cooperate ensuring that the premise could be utilised for better scope for poor people of Sikkim through innovative and perspective plans.