3 weeks ago
Delhi govt suspends central procurement; hospitals to buy supplies directly
The government that runs Delhi decided to change how hospitals get their medicines.
Before, a special office called the Central Procurement Agency, or CPA, bought medicines and medical tools for all government hospitals.
Now the government has told that office to stop buying things for now.
Instead, each government hospital must buy its own medicines and equipment.
Any buying jobs the old office had started but not finished have been cancelled and given back to the hospitals.
The big central buying system was started in June 2025, but the government says it needed approval from the Council of Ministers first.
Older price agreements will stay in place until they run out.
This change happened after a case about possibly bad medical supplies being given to hospitals.
A health minister named Pankaj Singh asked for a report about the problem.
So hospitals will handle their own buying until a new system is ready.
The Delhi government has suspended the Central Procurement Agency's (CPA) procurement functions as an interim measure.
Government hospitals in Delhi must now procure medicines, surgical consumables and medical equipment on their own until a new framework is put in place.
All pending and incomplete tenders initiated by the CPA have been cancelled and returned to the concerned hospitals for further action.
The central procurement system was introduced via government orders in June 2025 and, according to the government, required approval from the Council of Ministers under the Transaction of Business Rules.
The move follows an Anti-Corruption Branch case into the alleged supply of substandard medical and surgical consumables, prompting Health Minister Pankaj Singh to request a report.
- Who
- The Government of Delhi, the Central Procurement Agency (CPA), government hospitals in Delhi, and Health Minister Pankaj Singh.
- What
- Suspension of the CPA's procurement functions, with hospitals directed to buy medicines, surgical consumables and medical equipment directly; pending CPA tenders were cancelled.
- Where
- Delhi, the national capital of India.
- When
- Announced in an official order reported in the article, following the June 2025 introduction of the central procurement system and a recent Anti-Corruption Branch case.
- Why
- Because the policy decision should have been placed before the Council of Ministers under the Transaction of Business Rules, and following an Anti-Corruption Branch case into alleged supply of substandard medical and surgical consumables.
Key facts
- Agency affected
- Central Procurement Agency (CPA)
- CPA established
- 1994
- Action taken
- Procurement functions suspended as an interim measure
- Pending tenders
- Cancelled and returned to concerned hospitals
- Policy introduced
- June 2025 via government orders
- Procurement rules
- General Financial Rules and GeM guidelines
- Trigger
- Anti-Corruption Branch case into alleged substandard supplies
- Existing agreements
- Rate contracts remain applicable until expiry or termination





