Kerala Medical Services Corporation Ltd (KMSCL) has transferred 14 officials from its headquarters and warehouses after a review flagged alleged irregularities in appointments, salary revisions and financial transactions, while a vigilance investigation continues into a separate Rs 14 lakh warehouse-related issue.
The transfers followed the state government’s examination of allegations and related records concerning the corporation’s functioning. The officials include personnel facing allegations linked to financial misconduct, according to the Times of India report. The move is reportedly the first major round of transfers at KMSCL in nearly a decade.
KMSCL appointments are made on a contract basis. The review found that several appointments allegedly did not comply with prescribed recruitment norms, including at the assistant level. It also examined the declaration of probation for some employees. The findings have placed the corporation’s recruitment and internal personnel procedures under scrutiny.
The review also identified alleged irregularities in salary revisions. Some employees were reportedly granted increases in violation of applicable rules, creating a financial liability running into crores of rupees for the corporation. The report did not specify the total amount involved or the number of employees affected by the salary decisions.
A separate vigilance investigation is under way into an alleged financial irregularity involving Rs 14 lakh at one of KMSCL’s warehouses. The supplied report does not provide details of the warehouse, the transaction under investigation or the current status of the vigilance inquiry.
The transferred officials were appointed during the first and second terms of the Left Democratic Front governments, according to the report. The transfers cover both the corporation’s headquarters and warehouse operations, bringing the organisation’s administrative and supply-chain functions into the scope of the latest action.
The review comes amid wider concerns over alleged irregularities in medicine procurement and storage. Reports received by the government are said to have pointed to lapses in procurement processes, including alleged instances in which officials extended undue concessions to pharmaceutical companies. The report does not establish that the allegations have been proved or identify the companies involved.
KMSCL’s procurement and storage systems are central to the movement of medicines through Kerala’s public health network. Any disruption or administrative uncertainty in these functions could affect the corporation’s ability to manage contracts, warehouses and supplies, although the supplied report does not indicate that medicine distribution has been interrupted.
Further action is expected after additional scrutiny of KMSCL’s operations, particularly its procurement and medicine-storage systems. The government’s review and the ongoing vigilance investigation will determine the next steps in the cases involving the reported recruitment, salary, financial and warehouse-related allegations.
