Kerala owes Rs 83 lakh more to contractor of Medical College payward
The Health Secretary was unaware until the KSCC GM told him about this on Monday
Kochi: Health Secretary Dr K. Elangovan on Monday visited the Ernakulam Govern-ment Medical College (EGMC) in order to assess the progress of proceedings to transfer the payward building of the medical college to house the outpatient wing of the Kochi Cancer Centre.
The Health Secretary held discussions with EGMC principal Dr Aswini Kumar and Kerala State Construction Corporation (KSCC) general manager Jose George. KSCC had undertaken the construction of the pay-ward building.
Jose George told Dr Elangovan that the Co-operative Academy for Professional Education (CAPE) owed Rs 83 lakh to the contractor as security deposit and retention fee.
A senior CAPE officer had told DC recently that the security deposit collected by it from the contractor and now owed in return came to Rs 12 lakh.
“However, CAPE used to withhold 10 percent of each payment to the contractor which was termed retention fee and this came to the rest of the amount.
The Health Secretary was unaware until the KSCC GM told him about this on Monday. The health department was under the impression that the issue of payment to the contractor was over with the payment of Rs 2.2 crore earlier. He has to take up the issue with the Health Minister and the Co-operation Minister and make arrangements for the payment so that proceedings for starting the cancer centre OP work can be initiated,” said a health department official.
