Audit report questions PID’s Rs 90.74 million insurance contract with State Life, citing procurement violations and inadequate beneficiary verification.
ISLAMABAD: An official audit has flagged financial and administrative irregularities involving Rs 90.74 million in the Press Information Department (PID), Islamabad, over a health insurance programme for journalists and media workers, citing the absence of open competitive bidding and weaknesses in beneficiary verification.
According to the audit report of the Information and Broadcasting Division, PID spent Rs 90.740 million on the Insurance Programme for Journalists and Media Workers during the financial year 2023-24. However, auditors found that the contract was awarded to the State Life Insurance Corporation without following the open competitive bidding procedure prescribed under the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) Rules, 2004.
The auditors termed the procurement irregular and recommended an investigation to establish responsibility for the alleged violation of government procurement regulations.
Under Rule 20 of the Public Procurement Rules, 2004, open competitive bidding is the principal method for procuring goods, services and works. The report also referred to Rule 42(c)(ii), which permits direct contracting under specified circumstances where only one manufacturer or supplier is available for the required procurement.
However, auditors concluded that PID had not complied with the applicable requirements when awarding the Rs 90.74 million insurance contract.
The audit also identified shortcomings in the department’s verification of beneficiaries’ eligibility, raising concerns about the administrative controls governing the insurance programme.
According to the report, PID’s records did not contain certificates confirming that beneficiaries’ spouses or dependents were not employees of federal or provincial governments. The department also lacked an effective mechanism to determine whether journalists and media workers receiving insurance coverage were already benefiting from federal or provincial government Sehat Card schemes.
PID had issued Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the programme on August 15, 2023. Clause IV stated that applicants should not already be receiving healthcare services under a federal or provincial government Sehat Card scheme.
However, auditors observed that the department had failed to establish a proper system to verify compliance with this condition. They considered the omission a violation of the department’s own procedures because beneficiaries’ eligibility could not be adequately established without an effective verification mechanism.
Responding to the procurement objection, PID management maintained that the insurance services had been acquired under Rule 42(f) of the Public Procurement Rules, 2004.
The auditors rejected the explanation, stating that State Life Insurance Corporation had hired services from the private sector in a manner they considered inconsistent with the applicable procurement rules.
The matter was subsequently discussed by the Departmental Accounts Committee (DAC) during a meeting on December 30, 2025. The committee directed PID management to seek clarification from the appropriate forum regarding the procurement issue.
The audit report recommended an investigation to identify officials responsible for any established violations of procurement regulations. It also called for the Rs 90.74 million expenditure to be regularized through the competent authority in accordance with applicable rules.
The findings concern procurement procedures, beneficiary verification and compliance with the programme’s eligibility requirements. The report does not establish that the entire amount was stolen or misappropriated, nor does it establish proven corruption against any named official.
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