RNEL seeks CBI, CVC probe into complaint against L&T Defence on warship project
New Delhi, June 15: Reliance Naval & Engineering Ltd. (RNEL) has sought a probe by the CBI and the CVC into a complaint it has lodged with the Defence Ministry alleging that a senior Indian Navy officer is favouring its business rival, Larsen & Toubro, in big-ticket defence deals.
Sources told that, in its complaint, RNEL has alleged that the naval officer, whose son is employed with the L&T Defence at its Pune unit, passed on sensitive information to L&T pertaining to the prestigious Rs 20,000 crore (almost $3 billion) project to construct four warships for the Indian Navy.
While the Defence Ministry has reportedly initiated an internal inquiry on the complaint, RNEL has now sought a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Central Vigilance Commission into the matter, the sources said.
RNEL's complaint reportedly mentions Vice Admiral D. Deshpande who, it has alleged, is acting virtually as "an agent" of L&T and is passing on vital information pertaining to the sensitive defence projects to the company.
The complaint also alleged that the Vice Admiral's son was going to pursue an MBA degree that would be paid for and "sponsored by L&T".
According to a media report, Deshpande has clarified his position in the matter to the Defence Ministry top brass, details of which are not available.
In Mumbai, L&T's Whole Time Director J.D. Patil rejected the contentions made in the RNEL complaint and said that it was for the Defence Ministry to respond to such allegations.
On the employment of Vice Admiral Deshpande's son in L&T Defence, he said around 80 percent staff comprise retired defence personnel for the technical expertise they possess.
"Our recruitment processes are very stringent and based purely on merits, not any other consideration, and our organisational ethos don't permit such things," Patil told here.
While the matter is under a probe, the warships project is in a limbo since 2017 when RNEL and L&T Defence were shortlisted by the Defence Ministry for award of the contract.
To be awarded under the "Make In India" initiative of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, it would be the biggest warship project incorporating Landing Platform Docks for transporting troops, equipments, tanks and fighter choppers across the seas.
While the RNEL has joined hands with the France's Naval Group, L&T Defence has roped in Spain's Navantia Group for the mega-project, with the foreign partners contributing by way of design and technology for the ships to be constructed in an Indian shipbuilding yard.
Incidentally, RNEL has contended that there is a move to split the project into two by awarding a couple of ships to L&T Defence, which it contends would be "detrimental to the interest of the country" and Indian Navy.
Until clarity emerges on the charges by RNEL against L&T Defence, the next crucial step in the procurement process -- opening the commercial bids to determine the final winner from among the two contenders -- will hang fire indefinitely, and entail further delays to the time-bound project, the sources said.
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'Low-quality' catheters supplied to West Bengal govt hospitals at high price, probe ordered
Kolkata (PTI): The West Bengal health department has launched a probe into the supplies of allegedly low-quality and locally made catheters at a high price to several government hospitals, posing a risk to the lives of patients undergoing treatment in these facilities, officials said.
Such central venous catheters (CVCs) were allegedly supplied to at least five medical colleges and hospitals in the state, defying allocation of international standard-compliant CVCs, they said.
The distribution company, which has been accused of supplying these catheters to government hospitals, admitted to the fault but placed the blame on its employees.
"We started checking stocks some time back and found these locally made CVCs in my hospital store. These catheters are of low quality as compared to those allocated by the state. We have informed the state health department," a senior official of the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital told PTI.
Low-quality catheters were also found in the stores of other hospitals, which indicates "possible involvement of insiders in the scam", a health department official said.
The low-quality CVCs were supplied by a distributor in the Hatibagan area in the northern part of Kolkata for the last three to four months, he said.
"Such kinds of local CVCs are priced around Rs 1,500 but the distributor took Rs 4,177 for each device," the official said.
A CVC is a thin and flexible tube that is inserted into a vein to allow for the administration of fluids, blood, and other treatment. It's also clinically called a central line catheter.
"An initial probe revealed that the distribution company Prakash Surgical had supplied the low-quality and locally manufactured catheters to several government hospitals instead of the CVCs of the government-designated international company.
"All the units will be tested and a proper investigation is on to find out who benefited from these supplies," the health department official said.
The distribution company blamed its employees for the supply of inferior quality catheters.
"I was sick for a few months. Some employees of the organisation made this mistake. We are taking back all those units that have gone to the hospitals. It's all about misunderstanding," an official of the distribution company told PTI.
According to another state health department official, a complaint was lodged with the police in this connection.
Asked about how many patients were affected by the usage of such low-quality CVCs, the official said, "The probe would also try to find that out".
According to sources in the health department, some of the staff of the hospitals' equipment receiving departments and some local officials of international organisations might be involved in the alleged irregularities.
