Tatas deny giving grant to a hospital in Raja''s constituency

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New Delhi, May 18 : Denying that it had granted crores of rupees to a hospital in Perambalur, former telecom minister A Raja''s constituency, Tata Sons today said Tata Trusts had not made even penny to the project.
"In 2008, a request was received through Sivasankar (Perambalur MLA) to partner the Government of Tamil Nadu in constructing a medical college and hospital in Perambalur ...The letter also mentioned that several other industrial houses were also being requested to partner the State Government in its efforts.
"The Trust had therefore only committed supporting the Government of Tamil Nadu on that basis, provided actual work to be executed by the Government was in progress. Since this was not happening, not even a rupee was given to the project," Tata Sons spokesperson said in statement.
The clarification came after the Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Usman Balwa, an accused in the 2G scam, today accused CBI of projecting Tatas as clean based on the statement of corporate lobbyist Niira Radia that the Tata trust donated Rs 50 crore to a hospital in Raja''s constituency in Tamil Nadu.
The statement further clarified that "the only help extended by the Trusts to the state of medical facilities in Perambalur was in response to a grant request in July 2007 to support the cost of upgradation of the medical facilities in the government hospital in Perambalur together with some taluka hospitals."
"A grant of Rs 8 crore was sanctioned against this request. Of this sanctioned amount, only a sum of Rs 3.26 crore was released against this request," it added.
It said that no further amount was released thereafter because the external expert, which reviewed the project, reported that the progress was slow.
The Tata Trusts have over the past several years provided financial assistance to many hospitals across the country to meet the cost of medical equipment to ensure that poor get access to good quality health services, it added.