Absent but present: Bapatla doc suspended for faking biometric attendance

Bapatla: Dr. Bhanu Prakash is a medical officer at a primary health care center in Bapatla. He doesn't attend to his duties but his biometric attendance always shows him as "present." This was the situation at the Guntupalli primary health center in Bapatla district where Dr. Bhanu Prakash was found managing his attendance with an artificial fingerprint.

Surprisingly, his staff was helping him fake his biometric attendance. The minister for health, family welfare, and medical education, Vidala Rajini, has suspended the medical officer.

During the minister's surprise visit to Guntupalli primary health center in Ballikurava mandal in Bapatla, she received several complaints from the villagers against the doctor. Dr. Bhanuprakash who has to attend to patients every day at the PHC was found running a private clinic in Bapatla. The people complained that there was no doctor available during an emergency. "The PHC that is supposed to run 24x7 has no doctor to attend to patients. The staff recorded his attendance with artificial fingerprint for the biometric attendance," said a villager.

The villagers told the minister that Dr. Bhanu Prakash also consumes alcohol with the staff in the PHC, talks in obscene language with the female staff, and makes video calls to them at night. The minister suspended the doctor and ordered the officials to take action against him. She said the department will soon appoint another medical officer.

The minister later inspected the vaccines and medicine stock and checked the medical records. During her rounds in the PHC, she found insects and cockroaches in the operation theatre. It was also found that the PHC was poorly maintained by the authorities.