CHANDIGARH: Now a new controversy has erupted in Punjab between two cabinet ministers Rural Development and Panchayats Minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Health and Family Welfare Minister Brahm Mohindra over the distribution of medicines in the 1186 dispensaries run in the rural areas of the state by the rural development department.
The Rural Development and Panchayats Minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa claims that at present these dispensaries are facing a tough time. As for the last seven months, the health department is not supplying medicines to these dispensaries. On the other hand, Health and Family Welfare Minister Brahm Mohindra says that the supply of medicines to these dispensaries have not been stopped for even a single day and thus there is no step motherly treat of these dispensaries.
It is learnt that for last many years round 1186 dispensaries are being run in the rural areas of the state by the rural development department and it is the responsibility of the department to procure medicines for these dispensaries. But health department has been pitching in for last many years and supplying these medicines in these dispensaries.
Sources said that each dispensary gets medicines worth Rs 4,500 per month and the designated doctor running each rural dispensary has to get medicines himself from the warehouse of the concerned district after filling in the voucher. But as the rural development department has not been paying the health department for the medicines being used in its dispensaries for last two years thus in December last year the health department stopped the supply to these dispensaries.
On this, Bajwa showed his resentment to the health department but the supply of medicines was not resumed. On the other hand, the health minister Mohindra says that supply of medicines was never stopped and these charges levelled on his department are false and frivolous. "I have also to answer to the public thus the supply of medicines was never stopped in these dispensaries as I have checked with the officials of the department. I do not know why Bajwa is saying all this,'' says Mohindra. On the other hand, Bajwa claims that the health department is not supplying medicines to these dispensaries run by rural development department. "We are now in a process of procuring funds to pay the pending amount to the health department so that the supply of medicines can start again, Mohindra is a senior leader and minister in the cabinet he might have been misled by the officials of his department,'' says Bajwa.
Meanwhile, Rural Doctors Union President Dr Aslam Parvez alleges that the dispensaries in the rural areas are being targeted due to ulterior motives and politics. As the health department wants to absorb the doctors of rural development department in their department that is for last few months the supply of medicines to these dispensaries have been stopped. "From July 1, we will sit on a dharna outside the official residence of the Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh to register our protest andstep-motherlyy treatment minted to us by the health department,'' he said.