NE NEWS SERVICE
CHENNAI, APRIL 18
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the principal opposition party in Tamil Nadu demanding the state government to disclose the purchase price of Coronavirus Rapid Test Kits bought from China here on Saturday.
#CoronaVirus பரிசோதனைக் கருவிகள் எத்தனை – என்ன விலை- எவ்வளவு குறைவான விலைக்கு வாங்கப்பட்டன என்பதை சத்தீஸ்கர் மாநில அமைச்சர் வெளிப்படையாக அறிவித்தது போல் தமிழக அரசும் அறிவிக்க வேண்டும்.
நாடே உயிர் காக்கப் போராடிவரும் நேரத்தில் அரசு நிர்வாகத்தில் வெளிப்படைத்தன்மை இருக்க வேண்டும்! pic.twitter.com/vAdxRIwEFM
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) April 18, 2020
A day after urging to speed up the purchase of rapid testing kits for coronavirus, the DMK president M K Stalin on Saturday demanded the government to disclose the price of kits purchased from China.
Stalin, the leader of opposition in the Assembly cited Chattisgarh Minister T S Singh Deo’s twitter post on the price of kits his State has bought and sought a similar disclosure from the AIADMK-led government.
The Chattisgarh Minister has transparently announced the number of kits purchased, and its low price, the DMK chief said in a Facebook post.
We are procuring 75,000 high quality rapid testing kits at a benchmark price of ₹337 + GST from a South Korean company based in India, which has proven to be the lowest bidder. The rate we have been able to close at is the lowest in India. (1/2)
— T S Singhdeo (@TS_SinghDeo) April 17, 2020
“Similarly, the Tamil Nadu government should transparently announce the number of kits bought and its price. I am urging disclosure as there should be transparency in government administration,” he said.
Stalin also tagged Deo’s post which said: “We are procuring 75,000 high quality rapid testing kits at a benchmark price of Rs 337 + GST from a South Korean company based in India, which has proven to be the lowest bidder. The rate we have been able to close at is the lowest in India.”
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Friday said, the state has received 24000 kits, and they would be distributed to all the affected districts. Apart from this, the state had also ordered for 1.25 lakh rapid testing kits from China, the Chief Minister disclosed.