The state government will conduct a census on how many patients outside West Bengal and neighbouring countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Bhutan get medical treatment facilities in the public sector healthcare institutes like medical colleges and hospitals, free of costs.

The reason behind this initiative is State health department led by the chief minister Miss Mamata Banerjee wants to launch a system to provide treatment to the home state patients on priority basis and then others outside Bengal.

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While addressing the sixth convocation programme of the West Bengal University of Health Sciences in the city on Thursday, Miss Banerjee said, “Our doctors and hospitals provide healthcare treatment to patients outside Bengal. Patients from four to five states outside Bengal, several neighbouring countries get treatment here free of cost.”

“We have to see whether our patients are getting proper and timely medical treatments in our hospitals because of the rush of the outsiders. We have to launch a system to identify out-station patients. The health department will check identity cards of patients to find out how many are outsiders,” she said.

Citing the recent incident of a death of young patient of the state-run Bangur Institute of Neurology, the chief minister said, “I am shocked to know that an employee won’t clear the file relating to a surgery of the patient without taking money. This happens due to the ill-behaviour of only one percent people in the healthcare.”

But no one in the health department could say whether they would check the Aadhaar card to find out exactly how many patients residing outside Bengal get treatment in government hospitals in the state.

The chief minister is vocally against the Aadhaar card. Few days ago, Mr Palash Dutta, a BIN clerk, was arrested after he allegedly demanded a bribe of more than three lakh rupees to clear the file relating to the purchase of a life- saving equipment required for the brain surgery of the patient at the BIN.

The patient died because of the delay in operation. A senior official in the health department said that the census would help the cash-strapped state government on what amount is being spent on hundreds of patients outside the state throughout the year.

“Probably no other states except Bengal in the country have the free treatment facilities for both BPL and APL categories of patients in government hospitals. As a result, government coughs up crore of rupees for treatment of outsiders for years. The chief minister might have a plan to check this expenditure,” he said requesting anonymity.

Miss Banerjee also criticised the human resource development ministry asking other states to raise their voices against CBSE’s failure to conduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for undergraduate MBBS and BDS course held across the country on last Sunday.

“Bengal students have been deprived because of inadequate supply of question papers. In one exam centre, there were only 600 question papers against 1000 examinees.” she said.