JAMMU: In order to ensure the smooth distribution/ availability of life saving, critical care medicines and other essential drugs, inspections of C&F Agents, Depot Holders, Consignees were carried out intermittently under the supervision of State Drugs Controller ,J&K wherein the firms were instructed to update the department with respect to specific shortages (if any) of life saving, critical care medicines and other essential drugs so that necessary support from administration is sought to ensure uninterrupted supply of these medicines in the supply chain within the UT’s of J&K & Ladakh in the interest of the public .

It has been accessed that till date, stocks comprising of life saving/ critical are and other essential medicines worth more than 18 Crore have been supplied to the stockiest across UT of J&K since lock down till date from the depot holders and C&F agents based at Jammu indicative of the fact that sufficient quantity of essential medicines are available in the supply chain.

The figure does not include the consignment of medicines in the distribution chain procured directly from other channels within and outside the U.T. To ensure that prominent senior citizen and physically challenged people may not face any difficulty in procurement of essential medicines, the department in its pro active approach mapped more than two hundred retail medical outlets throughout Jammu province in order to provide them life saving medicines at their door step and an advisory in this behalf was also published in the leading newspapers wherein the list of establishments along with their contact numbers was published and a nodal officer of department has also been appointed whose contact number has been publicized to facilitate and coordinate the delivery of medicines to the needy patients at their door steps , which is going a long way in the interest of the public.

Statutory Drug samples of more than two hundred formulations viz Antibiotics, PPI, Steroid, NSAIDs and sanitizers were drawn from the market and health institutions to check the identity, strength and purity of these drugs. These samples have been referred to State Drug Testing Laboratories for framing legal opinion to ascertain their quality parameters. Moreover, Stocks of Drugs worth Rs 36,782 have also been confiscated as the same were found to be contravening the provisions of the Act. The Department is taking all the necessary measures to ensure that public in general and patients in particular do not face any difficulty in procuring their life saving/essential medicines and is initiating all pro active measures in this perspective.

KR Desk