Private home care firm appointed without tender, say officials

The contract of a private company roped in by the Delhi government for handling all Covid-19 patients under home quarantine in the Capital was cancelled because the firm was not appointed through a tender, senior government officials privy to the development told HT.

The contract of a private company roped in by the Delhi government for handling all Covid-19 patients under home quarantine in the Capital was cancelled because the firm was not appointed through a tender, senior government officials privy to the development told HT on Tuesday, adding that a new process with tendering protocols will now be launched.

According to officials, the government will now open bids to hire a new contractor for the task, after fresh guidelines issued on Monday by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) allowed for such arrangements to be made to keep a track of home isolation cases. (File photo for representation)

Bengaluru-headquartered Portea Medical was since late April reaching out to Covid-19 patients in home isolation to assess their recovery and determine if they needed medical attention, an arrangement that was scrapped by the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) led by Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on June 19.

According to officials, the government will now open bids to hire a new contractor for the task, after fresh guidelines issued on Monday by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) allowed for such arrangements to be made to keep a track of home isolation cases.

A government spokesperson said that the health department is ready with the tender documents but an approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs is awaited.

“For any work that is more than Rs 1 lakh, a limited tender has to be issued and if the project is more than Rs 25 lakh, open advertised tenders have to be floated as per the general financial rules (GFR). But, Portea Medical was appointed on nomination basis. The Delhi cabinet led by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had approved it, which is against the GFR and CVC guidelines,” said a senior government official, asking not to be named.

An official in the L-G office said that the matter was also brought to the notice of the Union ministry of home affairs after which the L-G issued the order to cancel the contract.

A Delhi government spokesperson defended the initial arrangement, saying: “Floating a tender would have taken a lot of time and the pandemic demanded such an emergency measure be taken. Besides, the government’s move was in accordance with the disaster management Act which is currently enforced in the city.”

However, an official in the L-G office said the company was operating in Delhi since April 30. “It is understandable that the first appointment happened because it was the need of the hour. However, despite more than a month having passed, the government issued no tender. The services of the private firm were supposed to be a stop-gap arrangement,” the official said.

Portea Medical company through over 100 people – all based in Bengaluru – made at least one call a day to each patient under home quarantine in Delhi to counsel them and record their symptoms which, if found serious, were relayed to health officials.

On Friday, the LG cancelled the contract and the company is allowed to extend its service only to the 10,490 Covid patients who were under home isolation until Friday. For the new patients added in this category since, follow-ups are being done by staff under the district medical officer, which includes the district surveillance office (DSO). These officials were previously handling followup and outreach in the case of suspected patients advised home quarantine.

In all, 12,963 of the 24,988 active Covid-19 cases in the capital are under home isolation.

According to the latest guidelines issued by the DGHS, follow-ups will now be carried out via telephone calls by a team “outsourced/from linked health centre/medical students from various medical colleges” for a period of nine days after a person tests positive.

“A tender for this will be floated soon. But, the L-G should chair a DDMA meeting at the earliest to find a solution to the current problem where newly detected Covid positive patients are not receiving such follow-up calls as promptly as before,” the government spokesperson quoted above said.

Portea Medical did not specifically comment on the issue of its appointment. However, it said that the company is working in accordance with the government directives. “We cannot stress enough on the importance of home isolation and care. With an increasing number of cases, it is important that the right kind of infrastructure and provisions are made available to people to ensure timely treatment and decreased mortality. Individualized care is the need of the hour given that different people are exhibiting different symptoms,” it said in a statement.

“While home isolation can prove extremely beneficial for those with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms, hospital beds should be reserved for those who may have other pre-existing conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, etc or develop breathing difficulties. We have seen great success for our home quarantine offering and know that it is possible to recuperate when care is taken within the confines of one’s home environment, provided regular monitoring is also done,” the statement read.

The DDMA, in a statement on Monday, stated that regular follow up calls are being made to all positive cases in home isolation by the teams of the district surveillance officers (DSOs) to guide patients on the proper protocols for home quarantine.

“It is being ensured that each and every case is followed up with a due protocol and all necessary services are being ensured through the districts,” the DDMA said.