Kerala govt. shielding GVK EMRI for commissions in ambulance contract: Chennithala

Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala has accused the Kerala government of shielding GVK EMRI, a private firm contracted to run the 108 “Kanivu” ambulance service, in return for commissions amounting to over ₹250 crore.

In a statement issued here on Thursday (August 28m 2025), Mr. Chennithala released documents alleging that the company was blacklisted in Karnataka and terminated in Meghalaya but was still allowed to participate in Kerala’s ambulance tender. According to him, the government overlooked these disqualifications as a “gesture of gratitude” for commissions received earlier

According to the tender conditions, institutions which have been debarred or blacklisted by any State government cannot participate in the tender. Yet, the company submitted an affidavit in Kerala claiming it faced no bans or cases in other States to participate in the tender here, which the Congress leader said was “fraudulent conduct” and a violation of central financial rules.

Mr. Chennithala claimed that though Kerala Medical Services Corporation had received complaints about these violations, it chose to ignore these. He alleged that the government deliberately did not disqualify the company from the technical bid stage.

He also criticised the extension of GVK EMRI’s Kerala contract after its five-year term ended in March 2024. Instead of calling for fresh bids, the government allegedly renewed the contract for another 18 months at huge costs, which Mr. Chennithala said involved further commissions to the tune of crores. The government announced the new tender only after it was pressurised by trade unions, he added.

Four companies participated in the latest tender, of which one was disqualified. Consultancy firm Grant Thornton was assigned to vet the documents. Mr. Chennithala argued that a proper review would have eliminated GVK EMRI at the outset.

He further pointed out the wide variation in costs quoted by the firm. During the first Pinarayi Vijayan government, the company received Cabinet approval for a ₹517-crore contract to operate 316 ambulances. In contrast, its recent tender bid quoted only ₹293 crore for operating 335 ambulances.