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Business News/ News / India/  In Punjab, 251 PM Cares Fund ventilators lie unused: Health ministry
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In Punjab, 251 PM Cares Fund ventilators lie unused: Health ministry

Ministry of Health wrote to the Punjab Chief Secretary over the non-commissioning of ventilators provided to the state
  • The health ministry said that it had supplied 809 ventilators to Punjab, of which the state government installed only 558 ventilators while 251 are yet to be installed
  • On May 1, the Punjab government had written to the Ministry of Health over the issue of 809 ventilators provided to the State under PM Cares Fund 'not being installed and malfunctioning' (HT_PRINT)Premium
    On May 1, the Punjab government had written to the Ministry of Health over the issue of 809 ventilators provided to the State under PM Cares Fund 'not being installed and malfunctioning' (HT_PRINT)

    As many as 251 ventilators purchased under PM Cares Fund have remained uninstalled for the last few months in Punjab, the Union Health Ministry said in a letter to state's Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan on Tuesday.

    On April 11, the Ministry of Health wrote to the Punjab Chief Secretary over the non-commissioning of ventilators provided to the state.

    The health ministry said that it had supplied 809 ventilators to Punjab, of which the state government installed only 558 ventilators while 251 are yet to be installed.

    In a letter to the Punjab chief secretary, Rajesh Bhushan, IAS, wrote that "Ministry of Health supplied 809 ventilators to the Punjab government as demanded by the state. Out of the same, only 558 ventilators have been installed while 251 are still pending installation in the state's hospitals for the last few months now".

    The health ministry further wrote that it provided the ventilators because of the urgency for management of the Covid-19 pandemic. It added, "Non-commissioning of the same defeats the very purpose of this exercise by the Government of India".

    The ministry urged the Punjab government to install and operationalise the ventilators as soon as possible and said "If there is any additional requirement of ventilators, the same may be intimated to the Ministry of Health within next one week".

    Meanwhile, Kultar Singh Sandhwan, AAP MLA from Kotkapura has also alleged that ventilators supplied under PM Cares Fund are lying unused in Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot. Sandhwan shared a picture of the unused ventilators on his Twitter account and "These are the ventilators from PM Cares Fund lying unused in GGSMC, Faridkot. He urged Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh to operationalise them for the needy Covid-19 patients".


    On May 1, the Punjab government had written to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare over the issue of 809 ventilators provided to the State under PM Cares Fund "not being installed and malfunctioning".

    The state government wrote, " There have been several complaints regarding malfunctioning of these ventilators and also ventilators have not been installed at some of the locations even till date".

    It also asked the health ministry to install the ventilators on "priority" as the state is in the grip of the second wave of coronavirus.

    The Punjab government said that the service engineers and technical personnel who are deputed to take care of after-sale service said they do not have spares and consumables.

    The Punjab government urged the health ministry, " To instruct company officials to get the unused ventilators installed, get the malfunctioning ventilators repaired to make them worthy of working and ensure that they have the requisite spares and consumables for uninterrupted functioning".

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    Published: 12 May 2021, 02:56 PM IST
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