The abrupt transfer of the Army General who heads Delhi’s Army Base Hospital has sparked speculation and raised eyebrows about why such a change of guard has been necessary at such a crucial time in the Covid fight.
Major General Vasu Vardhan, Commandant of the Army Base Hospital, who is said to have only a few months to go before retirement, has been moved out and appointed ‘Additional Officer’ at the Army Research & Referral (R&R) hospital in Delhi.
Major General S.K. Singh, who was the deputy commandant at the Army Medical Corps Centre and College in Lucknow, has replaced Vardhan at the Army Base Hospital.
The transfer order, issued by the Directorate General of Medical Services (Army), came as a surprise since Maj Gen Vardhan had service until August this year. He is a pulmonologist, who is considered within the military’s medical fraternity as a very able officer.
Senior Army sources termed the transfer as a routine posting carried out as part of a larger plan of HR management within the Armed Forces Medical Services. They also pointed out the officer has completed tenure of 18 months. However, speculation persisted on the nature of the move.
Major General Vardhan, a respected respiratory medicine specialist who was at the forefront of the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic, lost his mother just a few days ago and was back on duty on the same day. “There is speculation the transfer order was issued after Major General Vardhan refused to entertain some calls for admission or Remdesivir injections from the office of a VVIP,” said a doctor.
Major General Singh takes over as the commandant of the Base Hospital at a time when it is being expanded to a 1,000-bed Covid-19 facility from the initial 450-bed one. The Base Hospital, like other military hospitals in the country, is currently overwhelmed with patients.
Chief of defence staff General Bipin Rawat on Wednesday, incidentally, visited the Base Hospital and the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel hospital, which was set by DRDO, to review their overall functioning.
