Funds for rural health infrastructure diverted

BANGALORE: In an incident of glaring violations, the state government has diverted Rs 98.35 crore earmarked by the 12th Finance Commission to improve health infrastructure facilities in rural areas of the state to fund its own scheme, the Arogya Kavacha.The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the state Legislature headed by S Shivanna of the BJP taking serious note of the diversion of the Central funds felt that the government’s action amounted to bypassing the Legislature.“The fund which was diverted and utilised for a different purpose by the state government has no concurrence with the Legislature,” the committee felt.According to the PAC, which recently submitted its report on the issue to both houses of the state Legislature, stated that the 12th Finance Commission earmarked Rs 150 crore to be spent for the upgradation of health infrastructure facilities in rural areas between 2006 and 2010.The state government had also prepared an action plan in which it was proposed to upgrade as many as 275 Community Health Centres as emergency care centres and establish 62 new trauma centres in district hospitals and other health centres across the state.The action plan also included the upgradation of Sanjay Gandhi Hospital for Trauma and Accident Care in Bangalore. However, the state did not adhere to the action plan of developing 275 CHC’s, and reduced it to 175 before limiting it to 137 centres.The release of grants from the Centre was also slashed to Rs 135 crore against the original approval of Rs 150 crore following the state government’s failure in utilising the fund properly.While the state government diverted the fund and spent it for the implementation of the Aaroghya Kavacha scheme, officials, however, submitted the utilisation certificate to the Centre and that amount was spent for the purpose for which the fund was released.Opining that the action of the government to divert the fund had failed to serve the original purpose, the committee directed it to complete upgradation of CHCs out of its own resources.The civil works which were taken up in 137 CHCs also remained incomplete at the end of 2010, the committee had rued in its report.  Reacting sharply on the action on the issue, senior Congress leader and former health minister Dr H C Mahavedappa said that this amounted to nothing but denial of basic health facilities to rural people. “The Centre had released the fund to improve the quality of life of those living in rural areas;  the state government has done grave injustice by diverting the fund,” he said.He also urged the state government to take up the upgradation of infrastructure facilities in all 275 CHCs for which funds were raised and even an action plan  was approved.