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| Successive JK Govts fail to implement Drug Policy | | Spurious drugs flood markets, GOI ignored | | Javaid Naikoo
Early Times Report
Srinagar, Mar 20: Despite receiving allocated funds annually from Central Government for Health system, successive Governments even after three years since its announcement are yet to implement new drug policy in the state as substandard drugs flood the markets.
Non-implementation of the much hyped policy has put a question mark on successive governments in Jammu and Kashmir as not only in 2012 then government despite announcing that it will implement a new drug policy in the state after March 31, 2013 to curb dominance of substandard drugs across the state ended with mere chaos and confusion among common masses but also present government according to sources has not yet issued any sort of guidelines to health department to implement the drug policy.
It was after a cabinet meet gave its nod to implement drug policy, the Congress Minister Sham Lal Sharma despite formally announcing that drug procurement was ready, sources associated with drug business at national level informed Early Times that various national level pharmaceutical companies are directly involved in using their influence to stop implementation of Drug Policy in the state by approaching power holders of the state administration to be lenient on the issue in exchange of Hefty amounts of Kind and Cash.
According to Reports of Drug and Food Control Organisation (DFCO) Jammu and Kashmir there has been an increase in marketing of substandard drugs to the state and in 2010-2011, around 21 drugs were found of substandard nature, while as in 2013-2014 the number reached to 138.
The union Minister for Health, J.P Nadda in the Lok Sabha said that government allocates financial support to states including Jammu and Kashmir to draw up action plans in health subject as per their need and added that under the National Health Mission (NHM), financial support is provided to the States for strengthening their healthcare delivery system including support for provision of free drugs to those who access public health facilities based on the requirement posed by the States in their Programme Implementation Plans.
He also said that an incentive of up to 5% additional funding (over and above the normal allocation of the state) under the NHM is provided to those states that introduce free medicines scheme and added that under the NHM-Free drug service Initiative substantial funding is available to States for provision of free drugs subject to States meeting certain specified conditions.
Unlike states where rulings of Central Government are thrown to winds, central Government in order to tackle the growing menace of substandard drugs has took concrete steps to check Spurious/Sub-Standard Drugs in the country which includes amendment in Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940 by the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 2008 to provide for more stringent penalties for manufacture and trade of spurious and adulterated drugs, setting up of Special designated courts for speedy disposal of cases to deal with the cases of offences under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, issuance of guidelines for taking action on samples of drugs declared spurious or not of standard quality in the light of enhanced penalties under the Drugs & Cosmetics (Amendment) Act, initiation of Whistle Blower Scheme to encourage vigilant Public Participation in the direction of Movement of spurious drugs in the country and providing assistance for upgrading of testing facilities and establishing new drug testing laboratories under the Capacity Building project through Wold Bank, so as to enhance the capacity of the laboratories to test large number of samples, overseeing inspection of drug manufacturing sites to ensure quality of imported bulk drugs. Meanwhile despite repeated attempts, Minister for Health, Chowdhry Lal Singh evaded a response. |
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