Mumbai, May 6: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Standing Committee on Wednesday referred back a proposal to award a single contract for cleaning services across eight civic-run hospitals for three years.
It was also noted that work had already begun in some hospitals even before the committee’s approval. Slamming the move, chairman Prabhakar Shinde warned officials against taking the panel for granted and sent the proposal back to the administration for reconsideration.
Rs 101-crore proposal faces opposition from corporators
A proposal worth Rs 101 crore to award a single contract for cleaning services across eight major civic hospitals in Mumbai — including KEM, Sion, Nair, Cooper, Bhagwati, Agarwal, Jogeshwari Trauma, and Nair Dental — was placed before the Standing Committee for approval on Wednesday. The administration has decided to entrust the cleaning work of all eight hospitals to one company, M/s Aura FMS Pvt. Ltd.
However, when the proposal came up for discussion, members across party lines opposed it. Health Committee chairman Harish Bhandirge alleged that work had already begun in some hospitals as early as March, even before the proposal was approved.
Concerns raised over monopoly and procedural violations
Leader of the House Ganesh Khankar cautioned against creating a monopoly, stating that essential services should not be handed over to a single contractor. NCP corporator Saeeda Khan, Congress group leader Ashraf Azmi, and MNS group leader Yashwant Killedar also came down heavily on the civic administration, criticising the proposal.
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Shraddha Jadhav questioned whether the administration was still functioning in an “administrator mode”, despite the presence of elected representatives.
Standing committee orders inquiry into early work execution
Responding to the concerns, Standing Committee chairman Prabhakar Shinde said the administration must not take the committee for granted and ordered an inquiry into how work commenced in some hospitals prior to approval.
Members also flagged possible collusion between officials and contractors, prompting him to direct that accountability be fixed and responsible officers be investigated.
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Earlier, BJP MLA Mihir Kotecha had demanded that the housekeeping tenders for major civic hospitals be scrapped, alleging a Rs 45 crore scam. He also called for a thorough probe into the role of senior officials in the BMC's Health Department, claiming manipulation in the bidding process.
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