March 16, 2026 : A major procurement irregularity has surfaced at Government Medical College in Mahasamund, Chhattisgarh, after documents obtained through the Right to Information (RTI) Act revealed that a contract worth more than ₹1.5 crore was awarded through an offline process, bypassing the mandatory Government e-Marketplace (GeM) portal.

The contract, covering housekeeping and security guard services, was allegedly processed manually despite state procurement rules requiring such purchases to be conducted through the GeM portal. The development has triggered political controversy, with Congress MLA Dwarkadhish Yadav demanding strict administrative action.

According to RTI records, the college’s purchase committee conducted the tender process on January 15 and January 20, 2025, when the Dean was not present. Committee members reportedly opened technical and financial bids on the GeM portal but exited the system within about half an hour after taking printouts. Instead of finalizing the order on the portal, the work orders were later issued through offline agreements dated May 26 and June 26, 2025.

The contracts were divided between two private firms with identical amounts. The housekeeping contract was awarded to Metaas Security and Fire Service Private Limited for ₹75,09,007, while the security guard services contract went to Bundela Security and Consultants Private Limited for the same amount. Together, the two contracts total roughly ₹1.5 crore.

RTI documents also point to irregularities in the security deposit process. Metaas Security submitted a Fixed Deposit Receipt (FDR) of ₹3.20 lakh from Union Bank as a security deposit. However, although Bundela Security’s contract mentions a required deposit of ₹2.40 lakh, there is no record of any FDR being submitted.

Another troubling aspect raised in the RTI response is the absence of procurement records on the GeM portal. When copies of GeM-related documents were requested, the medical college administration stated that the contract order copy was not available on the portal, raising concerns about the missing digital trail that should normally exist for such procurements.

Congress MLA and Khallar constituency representative Dwarkadhish Yadav called the matter extremely serious and said the tender was issued outside the authorized jurisdiction. He argued that conducting a procurement of this scale without the presence of the regular Dean violates established procedures and warrants an immediate investigation.

Medical College Dean Dr. Renuka Gahane has defended the process, stating that the tender was issued according to rules and that the matter had been forwarded to the Health Commissioner for approval. However, she did not clarify why the final contract order was not placed through the GeM portal or why the related records are unavailable.

The GeM platform was introduced by the central government to bring transparency and accountability to public procurement. Government departments are required to use the portal for the purchase of goods and services above specified limits. Bypassing the system to issue offline contracts can raise serious questions about transparency and compliance with procurement regulations.

With the RTI findings now public, there are growing demands for the Chhattisgarh Health Department and the Directorate of Medical Education to order an independent inquiry. Key issues include identifying who authorized the offline contracts, why the security deposit from one company was not secured, and how records from the GeM portal became unavailable.