Brazil suspends Bharat Biotech's Covaxin order over graft allegations
Hyderabad, June 30: The Brazilian government, which agreed to purchase 20 million doses of Bharat Biotechs COVID-19 vaccine Covaxin, on Wednesday announced suspension of the contract following allegations of irregularities in the deal.
"By recommendation of @CGUonline, we decided to temporarily suspend the Covaxin contract.
According to CGU's preliminary analysis, there are no irregularities in the contract, but, due to compliance, the @minsaude opted to suspend the contract for further analysis," Brazil Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga tweeted.
The Covaxin contract to Brazil landed in controversy after the South American countrys Attorney General reportedly launched a probe into the deal.
"It is noteworthy that the @govbr did not pay ANY CENT for the Covaxin vaccine.
The measure does not compromise the pace of the vaccination campaign against #Covid19 in Brazil, since there is no approval from Anvisa for emergency or definitive use of the immunizing agent," Queiroga said in another tweet.
#URGENTE??|
— Marcelo Queiroga (@mqueiroga2) June 29, 2021
Por recomendação da @CGUonline, decidimos suspender temporariamente o contrato da Covaxin. Pela análise preliminar da CGU, não há irregularidades no contrato, mas, por compliance, o @minsaude optou por suspender o contrato para uma análise mais aprofundada.
⚠️ Vale ressaltar que o @govbr não pagou NENHUM CENTAVO pela vacina Covaxin. A medida não compromete o ritmo da campanha de vacinação contra a #Covid19 no Brasil, já que não há aprovação da Anvisa para uso emergencial nem definitivo do imunizante.
— Marcelo Queiroga (@mqueiroga2) June 29, 2021
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UP: Petrol pump manager booked for denying fuel to ambulance; causing man's death
Ballia (UP) (PTI): Police on Saturday registered a case against a petrol pump manager in connection with the death of a 50-year-old man who allegedly could not be taken to hospital in time after a private ambulance was denied fuel.
The case has been filed against Ashok Kumar Bharti, manager of M/s Bhushan Service Station in Tengrahi village, under sections of the Essential Commodities Act, officials said.
According to police, the FIR was lodged following a complaint by Supply Inspector Indresh Kumar Tiwari. During the inquiry, the manager admitted that an ambulance had arrived at the petrol pump around 9.20 pm on April 22 seeking fuel, stating that it had run out of petrol. However, fuel was not provided, citing non-availability, officials said.
The ambulance allegedly remained stationed at the pump for about 15 minutes. However, records showed that the petrol pump had sufficient stock on that day, including 4,595 litres of motor spirit, 4,784 litres of high-speed diesel and 3,475 litres of premium petrol, indicating that fuel was available but not supplied, the FIR said.
District Magistrate Mangla Prasad Singh said an inquiry was conducted under the supervision of the Additional District Magistrate by a team comprising the Sub-Divisional Magistrate of Bairia and the District Supply Officer. Based on the findings, directions were issued to register a case.
Circle Officer (Bairia) Mohammad Fahim Qureshi said police have launched a probe and are searching for the accused manager.
Earlier, District Supply Officer Devmani Mishra had said that Chhatthu Sharma (50), a resident of Pandeypur village in Bairia tehsil, fell critically ill on the night of April 22. His family was taking him to the district hospital in a private ambulance when it ran out of fuel on the way.
The family approached a petrol pump near Tengrahi village for fuel, but the operator allegedly refused, citing a shortage. The family claimed that Sharma died on the way as he could not be taken to the hospital in time due to a lack of petrol.
The district magistrate said that CCTV footage confirmed that the ambulance had reached the petrol pump and sought fuel, which was not provided. He added that the pump operator cited low stock, but inspection revealed sufficient stock of petrol and diesel at the outlet.
Officials said that representatives of Indian Oil have also visited the site, and further action against the petrol pump will be recommended based on the findings.
