A doctor in Odisha was caught red-handed on Monday while taking a bribe from a patient for performing cataract surgery at the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) in Subarnapur district.
The accused doctor has been identified as Dr. Sanjib Kumar Kar, who works as an ophthalmologist at the DHH.
Cataract surgery is conducted free of cost at all government hospitals in the state. However, Dr. Kar insisted that the complainant, a daily wage laborer, pay Rs 6,000 for the cataract surgery of his uncle, who is an ailing old man in his eighties.
Subsequently, the complainant, Hadu Pradhan, informed vigilance officials about the illegal demand made by the doctor.
“Based on the complaint, vigilance officials laid a trap and caught Dr. Kar red-handed while accepting Rs 5,500 as a bribe from the complainant,” said a vigilance official.
The police also seized Rs 2,06,440 in cash during simultaneous raids at Dr. Kar’s house in Bolangir district, the government quarter inside the DHH campus, and his clinic at Kalapathar area in Subarnapur district.
The vigilance later arrested the accused and registered a case in this regard.
The incident has raised concerns about corruption in the healthcare sector in Odisha. It is important that the government takes strict action against such corrupt practices.