Repeated financial irregularities expose loopholes in manual billing systems; civic body promises full digitisation within 45 days
Pimpri-Chinchwad: The Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) is under scrutiny for continuing to rely on contractual employees and manual billing systems at its civic hospitals, even as multiple cases of financial irregularities have surfaced over the past three years.
Manual Billing System Raises Red Flags
Several instances of financial discrepancies have been reported at hospital billing counters, highlighting vulnerabilities in the offline system. Despite repeated assurances from authorities, the transition to a fully digital billing mechanism has progressed slowly.
Officials admit that the continued use of handwritten and offline billing methods has created loopholes, allegedly exploited by some staff members to manipulate records and divert public funds.
Rs 9.25 Lakh Fraud Case Highlights Systemic Issues
Earlier investigations revealed that four staff members at a PCMC-run hospital were accused of siphoning off approximately Rs 9.25 lakh by manipulating billing records. The accused included one permanent employee and three contractual staff at Prabhakar Malharrao Kute Hospital in Akurdi.
Following this, inspections at other civic hospitals uncovered a similar pattern at a facility in Bhosari, where two employees allegedly misappropriated nearly Rs 10 lakh.
Investigators found a common modus operandi—patients were charged the full amount, but only a fraction was recorded in official documents. For example, if a patient paid Rs 100, only Rs 25 would be entered in records, allowing staff to pocket the remaining amount.
FIR Yet to Be Registered, Probe Underway
Dr. Laxman Gophane, Chief Medical Health Officer of PCMC, confirmed that an investigation is ongoing. Authorities have written to the police seeking registration of an FIR against four individuals in one case, while a second FIR against two others is also being proposed.
He added that senior officials are also under scrutiny to establish accountability. However, as of now, no FIR has been officially registered in either case.
Pattern of Fraud Across Multiple Hospitals
The issue appears to be recurring across multiple facilities. In December 2024, staff at Jijamata Hospital were found involved in a fraud where a portion of patient payments was not deposited in official accounts.
Similarly, in November 2023, a contractual employee at Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital used fabricated receipts to underreport collections and misappropriate funds.
A senior health department official attributed the continued reliance on third-party staff to a shortage of permanent personnel, stating that round-the-clock clerical operations require more manpower than currently available within PCMC.
Digital Billing Seen as Long-Term Solution
Experts and officials agree that digitisation is the only sustainable solution to curb such fraud. While most of the nine PCMC-run hospitals still rely on manual systems, the city’s largest facility, Yashwantrao Chavan Memorial Hospital, has transitioned most of its billing counters to an online system in the past three months.
“We are in the process of making online billing mandatory across all hospitals within the next 45 days,” Dr Gophane said.
Demand for Strict Action and Independent Probe
Sayali Kiran Nadhe, president of the Congress city unit’s women’s wing, stressed that handwritten billing is a major source of fraud. She called for a complete shift to digital systems and demanded strict legal action against those involved.
Nadhe also urged that investigations be handled by police authorities rather than internal administrative bodies, alleging that previous cases saw accused individuals continue in service after returning misappropriated funds.
She warned that unless strict action is taken, such incidents could continue, undermining public trust in civic healthcare services.
