The kidney racket investigation may extend from Andhra Pradesh to neighbouring states like Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, to trace the nexus to those states. When the Panjagutta police booked a case against a Gandhi Hospital nephrologist, Dr Ramesh Chada and two of his assistants, and arrested two brokers following a sting operation, the illegal sale-of-kidneys racket came to light again.
Officials from a special team of West Zone police, who conducted the operation, said the brokers told them they were referred to Dr Ramesh Chada by a gynecologist named Dr Shruti from Bengaluru. The gynaecologist runs a private clinic called Shruti Clinic in that city. The brokers also told the investigation team that there are several other doctors in the city involved in the transplant racket. The brokers have named a famous doctor from a private hospital in Secunderabad and another doctor who is currently running a clinic at Ameerpet.
One of the accused, Rajendra Prasad alias Rajendra Kumar, a medical insurance agent from Khairatabad, has an insurance business in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Under the guise of being a medical insurance agent, Rajendra was involved in the kidney transplant network. When asked, the assistant commissioner of police, Panjagutta, J. Subbi Rami Reddy, said the cops were in the process of investigation and would explore all aspects of the case. “Though the two accused were remanded to judicial custody, we will seek their custody again for the purpose of investigation,” said Mr J. Subbi Rami Reddy.
OGH needs kidney transplant theatre
Even though the government’s only kidney transplant centre at Osmania General Hospital is ready, transplants can’t be carried out as there’s no electric supply. So despite a long waiting list, just one or two transplants a month can be carried out in the cardiology theatre if it’s available. For more than a year, the nephrology department has been awaiting an electric sub-station, which would enable around 8-10 transplants a month.
AP Medical Services and Infrastructure Deve-lopment Corporation said that unless the funds are released by the government, they can’t procure materials for the project. Dr Manisha Sahay, nephrologist from OGH said, “Our transplant theatre has been ready for a year. But we have to depend on the availability of theatres from the cardiology department. We can somehow manage to do one or two transplants a month. At any given time, there are at least 10 patients on our waiting list for transplants and around 200 on dialysis.”
Hospital superintendent Dr K. Ramdas admitted, “I’m aware of the problem. I'll speak to the health secretary about it.” APMSIDC MD Mr Syamala Rao stated, “We can’t take the project forward till we get the required funds, which is more than Rs 70 lakh.” Director of medical education Dr Vasant Prasad averred that he has requested the special chief secretary to draw the estimated amount of Rs 71 lakh from Arogyasri or the Hospital Development Society funds and deposit the same with APMSIDC.
The special chief secretary has assured that the matter would be looked into.