Patna, Oct. 8: Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS) has made it mandatory for patients to furnish their Aadhaar number before admission, becoming the first hospital in Bihar to do so.
The rule will be enforced from tomorrow.
Critical and emergency patients, who don't have the card at time of admission, will be given 15 days to submit their Aadhaar proof.
Hospital superintendent Prabhat Kumar Sinha said emergency patients would have to submit the proof within 15 days.
"Their treatment will not be hampered but other than emergency patients, anyone admitted for routine surgery or any other treatment would have to provide proof of their Aadhaar card."
Medical superintendent Manish Mandal said: "Patients coming for consultation in the hospital's outpatient department would also not be required to give proof of their Aadhaar card. Also, a counter has been opened near the emergency wing where patients who do not have an Aadhaar card can apply for it."
Sunil Kumar Singh, a member of the IGIMS body of governors, has urged the hospital administration to ensure that treatment is not denied or delayed to any patient over Aadhaar proof.
Hospital superintendent Sinha said the IGIMS has made Aadhaar proof must as many patients ask for corrections to be made to their names on bills which leads to problems in handling medical insurance cases and those coming for treatment under the chief minister's relief fund.
"We smelled something fishy was going on. So, to prevent any mistake, we have made the norm of taking proof of Aadhar card from the patient before admission," he said.
Mandal also said: "IGIMS is an autonomous institution on the lines of AIIMS-Delhi. We take charges for various facilities like private hospitals and have to manage our finances, keep our records because of which we require Aadhaar proof."
As of May this year, about 82 per cent people in Bihar had Aadhaar cards.
IGIMS director N.R. Biswas told The Telegraph that he was not aware of the new decision taken as he is on leave till October 13.
