Ramdas (Amritsar), April 29
Even as the world is grappling with the threat of SARS, more than 80 per cent of the staff, including the Senior Medical Officer, of the Primary Health Centre (PHC) here which caters to 191 villages of the border belt were found absent during a surprise check by the Vigilance Bureau today.

The Vigilance Bureau sleuths, led by Mr Rashpal Singh, DSP, also found medicines of expiry dates in the health centres during the raid. The department also checked the mini primary health centres and subsidiary health centres in the border district.

When the vigilance team reached the PHC at 8.10 a.m. it was found locked. However, Dr Nirwail Singh, who stays in the hospital premises, got the rooms opened. As the news about the raid spread, eight staff members who hail from Ramdas reached the health centre within an hour.

The total strength of the PHC is 40, including the SMO, three medical officers and one dentist. About 30 rural centres, subsidiary health centres and mini PHCs come under the jurisdiction of the Ramdas PHC. This primary health centre caters to the health needs of 2.14 lakh residents of border villages. Though the PHC is supposed to run emergency services round the clock yet all the rooms were found locked at the time of the surprise raid.

The Vigilance sleuths marked the doctors and other staff absent in the attendance register. The movement register which was also taken into possession did not mention where the staff members had gone.

Interestingly, only one patient reached the PHC till 9 a.m. which showed that the residents of the border belt have almost lost faith in government-run health centres in the border belt.

Many residents alleged that some of the subsidiary health centres were being run by Class IV employees as the doctors and para-medical staff rarely visited the remote areas. Mr Makhan Singh and Mr Ajit Singh, residents of Ghonewal village (which falls under Ghonewal subsidiary centre), alleged that the entire health system in the region stood collapsed. The health centres were rarely checked by senior health officials. The apathy of the state government could be judged from the fact that some of the health centres were still being run from gurdwaras, SGPC land etc. While the subsidiary health centre, Thoba, is being run from the gurdwara building, the land of the PHC, Ramdas, belongs to the SGPC and the authorities concerned had failed to get the same transferred in the name of the Health Department so far. Some of the buildings belonging to the Health Department were in a dilapidated condition.

The modus operandi of the medical staff is that they keep their applications (without dates) in the health centres which and leave is filled in the attendance register at the time of the surprise checks.

BATHINDA (OC): Thirtyfour out of 40 employees working at the Primary Health Centre (PHC), Nathana village, were found absent today when the Vigilance Bureau conducted a raid.

Sources said the Vigilance Bureau personnel went to the PHC at 8 a.m. and locked the entrance from inside. Only six employees were present at that time.