West Bengal Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee alleged corruption of up to ₹30 crore annually in the former TMC government's Swasthya Sathi health scheme.
Initial database scrutiny uncovered widespread irregularities, including fake cards, unverified beneficiaries, bogus doctor entries, and fraudulent hospital claims.
The state government initiated a comprehensive forensic audit into the program while planning to transition eligible beneficiaries to Ayushman Bharat.
Bengal Minister Alleges 'Large-Scale Fraud' In Health Scheme Of Previous TMC Govt
Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee alleges financial irregularities of up to ₹30 crore in the Swasthya Sathi scheme under the former TMC regime, initiating a forensic audit
Summary
Alleging large-scale financial irregularities in West Bengal's health insurance scheme during the previous TMC regime, Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee on Friday said the BJP government has detected “corruption to the tune of Rs 25-30 crore”, with millions of beneficiary cards found to be “fake and untraceable”.
The "discrepancies" in the ‘Swasthya Sathi’ scheme came to light as the government began scrutinising its database, while preparing to facilitate coverage for eligible beneficiaries under Ayushman Bharat and the state's 'Mukhyamantri Swasthya Bima Yojana', he said.
Mukherjee claimed that the previous government had been spending around Rs 30 crore annually on insurance premiums linked to cards whose beneficiaries could not be verified.
"… We are already seeing corruption to the tune of Rs 25-30 crore. This is not a T20 cricket match, so it will take time. Gradually, you will see how much more information comes out," the minister said.
"There were fake cards, beneficiaries, patients, doctors, hospitals… and fake information provided at different levels," the minister alleged.
It is only the “tip of the iceberg of corruption”, he asserted.
Mukherjee said the BJP government has initiated a forensic audit to establish the extent of the “financial irregularities”, and was also examining the scheme's database.
He also said “discrepancies” have been detected during verification of beneficiaries under the 'Lakshmir Bhandar' scheme of the previous TMC government.
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