The CAG report on Delhi’s public health infrastructure and health services under the previous AAP regime tabled in the assembly on Friday revealed that the city’s health institutions struggled with shortage of staff, inadequate medicines and equipment while the funds remained unutilised.

The audit report has also highlighted the shortage of specialists, including doctors, apart from a crunch of essential medicines, equipment, and consumables in the hospitals.

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According to the report, the Delhi State Health Mission (DSHM) could not utilise the funds released under the National Health Mission as Rs 510.71 crore was lying unspent in the bank accounts of the Delhi State Health Society and its 11 Integrated District Health Societies (March 2022).

It highlights that several hospitals lacked basic facilities, including dietary services, radiological diagnostic services while the waiting time for major surgeries was unacceptably long, ranging from 2-3 months to 6-8 months.

The report also contains audit findings pertaining to secondary and tertiary hospitals. It found that there was a shortage of 21 per cent of staff in the Health and Family Welfare Department of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD).

It mentions the Essential Drug List (EDL) that was not prepared annually but was prepared only thrice in the last ten years.

The CAG audit also noted that injections for rare/ fatal diseases like Haemophilia and Rabies were in short supply and the hospitals failed to monitor and evaluate timely and regularly the need for repair, maintenance, replacement, and condemnation of equipment.

It has revealed that against the proposed addition of 10,000 hospital beds (Budget speech 2016-17), only 1,357 beds were added during 2016-17 to 2020-21.

The department was unable to utilise any of the 15 plots acquired (June 2007 and December 2015) for Rs 648.05 lakh for establishing hospitals and dispensaries, despite having their possession.

Only three of the eight new hospitals were constructed during the audit period, said the report.

Similarly, there were several other irregularities that were mentioned in the report while the auditor body also gave recommendations accordingly on the basis of its findings.