Age certificates issued with signature of doctor on vacation
26 Jan, 2013The reply to an application under the Right to Information (RTI) Act has revealed that the age verification certificates of eleven state level athletes of Maharashtra bear the signature of the doctor who was absent on the day of signing them.
The Sports Authority of India (SAI) has designated two government hospitals to issue age certificates to the athletes so that age frauds in sports could be checked. However, the reply to the application shows that the forensic doctor of one such centre – LTMG Sion Hospital – was on vacation from October 15 to October 20, 2012. Yet, the certificates issued to the athletes have his signatures with the dates coinciding with his vacation period. Moreover, his signatures are present on the photo verification part of the certificates also though he never saw them.
The doctor has claimed that he went to the hospital to sign the certificates despite his leave on the insistence of SAI.