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New Delhi: The health check-up facility provided to the people of Bihar seems to be facing a crisis. Several controversies have erupted over the tender issued by the Bihar State Health Society (BSHS) for pathology services at health centres across the state, and the matter has reached the Patna High Court. POCT Services, the company previously providing pathological test services at all health centres in Bihar, has filed a petition in the Patna High Court seeking the cancellation of the State Health Society’s tender.
In its petition, POCT Services alleges irregularities in the entire tender process and claims that the tender terms are being ignored to favor a specific company. It is noteworthy that the Bihar State Health Society, despite disqualifying the L1 company due to inconsistent rates quoted in the tender, has issued a Letter of Intent to the L2 company, Hindustan Wellness.
Now, POCT Services has challenged the technical competence of Hindustan Wellness in the High Court, asserting that Hindustan Wellness does not meet the tender conditions. The hearing on the POCT Services petition, numbered CWJC, 25376/2024, is likely to take place shortly after the Chhath holiday.
In its petition filed in the Patna High Court, POCT Services states that Hindustan Wellness Private Limited, classified as L2 in the tender evaluation process, lacks the required annual testing capacity of 20 lakh tests. This capacity is a crucial requirement stipulated in Clause V, Section 2.4 of the tender document. It’s challenging for any company to participate further in the tender process without this mandatory capacity.
According to the eligibility criteria outlined in Bihar’s financial rules, only technically qualified bidders can proceed to the financial bidding stage. In its petition, POCT Services argues that Hindustan Wellness Private Limited’s bid is non-compliant, making it ineligible for declaration as the successful bidder. Allowing such a bidder to advance in the tender process directly compromises the quality of pathology services provided to public health facilities across Bihar.
It’s worth noting that reports of irregularities in the open tender conducted by the Bihar Health Department have been surfacing since October 23. Out of the seven participating companies, six discovered discrepancies in the financial bids for pathology services submitted by Science House, the L1 company. The financial bids, opened late on October 23, showed inconsistencies in the rates quoted by Science House at different locations.
When other participating companies raised this issue, Health Department officials remained elusive. After almost an hour and a half, they dismissed all companies, stating that the tender committee would review the matter, and any decision would be uploaded to the website. The biggest irregularity observed was that the Health Department didn’t seek signatures from anyone on the action sheet after the bids were opened.
Officials seemed to hastily conclude the proceedings. The Bihar State Health Society had invited tenders for pathology tests at all government health centres. The last date for submission was October 3. Seven companies were declared technically competent under NIT number 09/SHSB/Pathology Services/2024-25. Their financial bids were opened on October 23, 2024, at 5:00 PM, and Science House was declared L1.
While the financial bids were being opened, representatives of the participating companies noticed varying rates quoted by Science House at different locations. Science House had listed a 1 percent discount in one place and a 77 percent discount in another. It was also observed that the officials opening the bids manually changed the 1 percent sheet to 77 percent.
When other participants raised objections, all officials retreated to the ED’s room. After almost an hour, a message was conveyed through an official that the Health Society would consider the objection and upload the decision to the website. Surprisingly, the officials refused to accept any written objections at that time. However, participating companies submitted their objections to the department through email.
Subsequently, the Bihar State Health Society itself acknowledged the validity of the objection raised against Science House and disqualified the company from the tender process. Instead, the Society issued a letter in favor of Hindustan Wellness Private Limited, the company ranked L2 in the tender evaluation process. Now, the matter is in the High Court, and the fate of the tender lies in its hands. It should be noted that Science House is headquartered in Bhopal. Of course, a swift resolution to this entire issue will bring relief to the helpless patients in Bihar.
(The Author Vivek Shukla is a social activist hailing from New Delhi.)
