A group of men, allegedly acting in connivance with a parking attendant, was seen targeting patients in the parking area on King George’s Medical University’s (KGMU) Lari Cardiology campus on Thursday and persuading them to buy medicines from private medical stores.
The incident, captured on video, raises questions about the presence of touts, patient safety, the conduct of parking staff, the hospital administration’s responsibility and police surveillance, with a police outpost located within 10 metres of the department.
KGMU spokesperson Prof KK Singh said touts were strictly prohibited on the campus. If parking staff were found colluding with touts linked to private medical stores, an inquiry would be conducted to identify those involved. A report would subsequently be submitted to the police for further action, he added.
Prof Singh said the KGMU administration had already constituted a team to identify and apprehend touts operating on the university campus. The team had been conducting regular raids across various departments to curb such activities.
Following latest incident, the team would focus on Lari Cardiology to identify and apprehend those targeting patients and directing them to private medical stores outside the hospital, he added.
{{/usCountry}}Following latest incident, the team would focus on Lari Cardiology to identify and apprehend those targeting patients and directing them to private medical stores outside the hospital, he added.
{{/usCountry}}Lari police outpost in-charge Kapil Chaudhary said the vehicle seen in the video and its owner would be identified and appropriate action taken.
“We regularly conduct drives in coordination with KGMU officials to crack down on touts. Action has been taken against several touts in the past as well,” he said.
According to the account of the incident, a group of men was seen sitting near the parking area outside Lari Cardiology, apparently waiting for patients to arrive. At around 2.52 pm, when a patient approached the area, the men surrounded the patient and allegedly asked them to buy medicines from a private medical store known to them.
In another video, a parking staff member is seen taking a patient’s registration paper and handing it to a man wearing a black T-shirt. The man, who had parked his two-wheeler in the parking area, then took the vehicle out and asked the patient to sit behind him before taking them to a private medical store outside the hospital. The two-wheeler reportedly did not have a front number plate, raising questions about vehicle identification and enforcement in an area frequented by patients and their attendants.
The reported involvement of parking staff raises concerns about whether personnel deployed to manage vehicles and assist visitors are diverting patients to private establishments for commercial gain. However, the motive behind the incident and whether any financial arrangement was involved remain to be established.