Massive Irregularities Uncovered at Civil Hospital Quetta: PKR 30 Million in Illegal Purchases, Payments Made to Wrong Company

**QUETTA (Daily Qudrat):** Shocking financial and administrative irregularities have been uncovered at **Sandeman Provincial (Civil) Hospital Quetta**, as revealed in a **special audit report** presented during a meeting of the **Public Accounts Committee (PAC)** of the Balochistan Assembly.

The meeting, chaired by **PAC Chairman Asghar Ali Tareen**, reviewed audit findings covering fiscal years **2017 to 2022**, which exposed **illegal purchases worth PKR 30.016 million**. The report revealed **major discrepancies between supply orders and payment records**, stating that **orders were issued to one company while payments were made to another**, without proper stock registers or inspection reports.

In another alarming revelation, the audit found that **medicines worth PKR 22.825 million** went missing from the hospital’s central store during **2019–20**. The hospital administration claimed that the **former pharmacist failed to record entries due to illness**, yet the **complete record has still not been submitted**.

Furthermore, the report exposed that the hospital purchased **oxygen cylinders at exorbitant rates**, causing a **loss of PKR 1.342 million** to the provincial exchequer. While the contract price was **PKR 537 per cylinder**, records showed that the cylinders were purchased for a **staggering PKR 40,000 each** during the pandemic. The audit also noted that **all quotations were prepared in the same handwriting**, raising serious questions about the transparency of the procurement process.

The **PAC expressed strong dissatisfaction** with the explanations provided, terming them **unsatisfactory**, and ordered the identification of responsible officials. The committee directed that a **comprehensive inquiry report** be submitted **within one week**, with **strict action against those found guilty of negligence or corruption**.