PATNA
Former minister Vikram Kunwar on Tuesday shot off a letter to chief minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday alleging a scam in the purchase of ambulances in Siwan.
Kunwar, in his letter, alleged ambulances were purchased at three times the market price. “Each ambulance worth ₹7 lakh was purchased for around ₹22 lakh in Siwan district. Instead of procuring these through Government E-Market place portal (GEM), ambulances were purchased from another place,” Kunwar alleged in his letter and requested the CM to get the matter investigated.
The former MLA further said 10 ambulances have been purchased from funds provided by BJP MLC Tunna Pandey and former MLAs Ramesh Singh Kushwaha and Vyasdev Prasad.
Meanwhile, acting on a complaint from Kunwar, Siwan district magistrate Amit Pandey has ordered a probe. “A committee has been constituted to probe the matter. Ambulances also carry a few special types of equipment for Covid, which is why their rates were higher than normal,” the DM told ANI.
MLC Tunna Pandey feigned ignorance about the cost of the ambulances. “We don’t know at what price the ambulances were bought. The DM has constituted a committee for investigation into the matter,” he said.