WORLD BANK TRAPS ORISSA MINISTER

By Dhrutikam Mohanty
“ DRI reviewed the Orissa Health System Development Project (OHSDP) because, during the Department of Institutional Integrity’s (INT) investigation into the Bank’s Reproductive and Child Health Project, a firm admitted paying INR 500,000 (USD 11,000) to the Orissa State Minister of Health and other ministry officials to facilitate the payment of INR 2.5 million (USD 55,500) in non-Bank-funded invoices.”

The above few lines mentioned in the page 188 of the Detailed Implementation Review (DIR) of India Health Sector, 2006-7 of World Bank has taken away the sleep from the eyes of Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s top-notch anti-corruption brigade, who were in deep slumber over the matter. While they have miserably failed to take notice the multi crore scams held under their nose, the World Bank have exposed the stink in the Orissa Health System.

The OHSDP was a state-level project that sought to improve the health of the people of Orissa. This was financed by a USD 82.1 million International Development Association (IDA) credit that became effective on September 8, 1998, and closed on March 31, 2006. In 2005 a World Bank investigation revealed large-scale systemic fraud and corruption in Orissa health project and suggested to conduct a DIR, to which the Govt.of India agreed.

The World Bank probe into the OHSDP has come out with a sensational revelation. During the investigation, a firm admitted that it had paid Rs.5 lakh to Orissa Health Minister and officials for getting payment of Rs.25 lakh dues incurred in Reproductive and Child Health Project. Banks had also received four complaints alleging collusion and corrupt practices by OHSDP bidders and Procurement Support Agency officials. A 600 page document released by the Bank has mainly focused on serious corruption and irregularities in tendering, construction of the building and procurement of equipments. The amount of Health System Scam is over Rs.300 crores and is said to be the largest scam of the administration. “The probe has revealed unacceptable indicators of fraud and corruption,” said World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick. “The Government of India and the World Bank are committed to getting to the bottom of how these problems occurred. On the Bank side, there were weaknesses in project design, supervision and evaluation. I am determined to fix these problems.” Orissa Health secretary Chinmay Basu reacts," Govt. is serious about the matter and already the Chief Secretary is enquiring into the alleged corruption and irregularity charges by the World Bank. Reports will be come out very soon."
The million-dollar question is who has swallowed money from the project? As for last 7 years anti-corruption drive has been Naveen’s main plank so he is desperate to haunt the bank-tainted minister as soon as possible. A worried Chief Minister first went to defensive mode and hurriedly formed a Committee headed by the Chief Secretary to look into the scam. But this was not enough to satisfy his retractors demanding a CBI enquiry. Further he has ordered a vigilance probe into the alleged acceptance of bribe and also asked the World Bank to provide specific names of those involved in it. But on the other hand, Sachi Satpathy, a member of World Bank’s OHSDP Evaluation Team has alleged the involvement of the then Health Minister and present Finance Minister Prafulla Chandra Ghadei in the multi crore scam. But Ghadei refutes these allegations and said, "this is a conspiracy to malign me and hamper my clean image. I welcomes any sort of investigation, it may be vigilance or administrative."

Now Naveen is in troubled waters. After the communal and ethnic trouble while he was just having some respite, now came the World Bank Review Report. The first has dented his image of a secular leader internationally and in the second an international organization directly indicting the involvement of one of his senior cabinet colleague in bribery.