Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Apr 20: Duping people, Directorate of Indian System of Medicines (ISM) illegally established over a dozen dispensaries in Kupwara Assembly constituency of North Kashmir last year soon after Parliamentary elections.
These ISM dispensaries were established at several villages in Kupwara Assembly constituency under the verbal orders of the Director General of ISM, Dr Abdul Kabir Dar, to help the then Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Saifullah Mir, in the Assembly elections.
Sources said that soon after the last year’s Parliament elections in which National Conference performance was poor in Kupwara Assembly segment, Dr Dar approached the Minister with a plan to establish ISM dispensaries in Kupwara Assembly segment to help him gain votes.
These dispensaries were established at several places including Gotingo, Gulgam, Pazipora, Kunanposhpora, Payerpora, Hayan, Helmatpora and Zurhama on the verbal orders of Dr Abdul Kabir Dar.
Since there was no Government order for establishment of these ISM dispensaries, Sarpanches of these villages, where these dispensaries were established, were asked to provide the accommodation. The staff from other dispensaries was illegally transferred to these dispensaries to make them functional. Besides this, medicine was also provided illegally.
These dispensaries were apart from the one which was established at Gugloosa in Kupwara constituency under a Cabinet order. It may be mentioned here that Government last year ordered establishment of one ISM dispensaries in every Assembly segment of the State. Under this order, five dispensaries were established in 5 constituencies of the Kupwara district at Gugloosa, Kulangam, Batpora, Kalamabad and Varnov in Kupwara, Handwara, Karnah, Langate and Lolab constituencies respectively.
Residents of Gotingoo said that on March 7, the officials said that they are closing the dispensary. “The dispensary was established in the village in September last year and since then we didn’t have to go to other villages for medicare. Now it is being closed and we will face problems”, they said.
The Sarpanch of the village, Abdul Ahad, said that the person who provided accommodation for the dispensary had taken loan to construct washroom and toilet for it. He was not provided a single penny as rent. “We will not allow closure of the dispensary”, said agitated villagers.
The Assistant District Medical Officer, Kupwara, Dr Farooq Ahmad Wani, admitted that seven ISM dispensaries were established in the district on the verbal orders of the DG ISM last year. “We later got Cabinet sanction for establishment of 5 dispensaries and for two, Gotingo and Gulgam, we didn’t get and we had to close them down”, he added. He said that there was an understanding that the Sarpanches of the villages will provide accommodation for these dispensaries and ISM will provide man power.
Sources, however, said that these 5 dispensaries, for which sanction was granted, was under general Cabinet order for establishment of dispensaries in every constituency of the State.
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