Bhopal, Mar 22 (IANS): A private medical college and hospital in Madhya Pradesh's Indore has been suspended from the Ayushman Bharat scheme over several irregularities found by the state health authority team.

"Index Medical College, Hospital and Research Center has been suspended from the scheme for violating the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) made in the Ayushman Scheme and committing irregularities to get undue benefits of the scheme," stated the official order.

During the audit conducted in the first week of March, the Authority noted that while 500 patients were registered online, only 76 patients were found in the hospital.

No satisfactory reply was provided by the hospital administration in respect of the remaining patients.

The audit team discovered that patients who were not in need of admission and intensive care were admitted and were being unnecessarily treated in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

The administration had also been extending the hospitalisation time of patients for no good reason.

The hospital also treated many on the card of one patient to take undue financial advantage, wherein they were made to spend money for medical supplies and tests, which was mandatory to be made available free of cost under the scheme.

The hospital administration was also non-cooperative with the audit team and did not provide the documents on demand, said the official release.