Punjab govt to check sale of 'unauthorised' drugs by chemists

Chandigarh, June 29 (UNI) To effectively check the sale of 'habit forming drugs' without prescription from a registered medical practitioners, joint raids by teams comprising of drugs inspectors, medical officers, voluntary organisations and officers of the police department are being conducted in Punjab.

The government is effectively implementing the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940 to check sale of such drugs by chemists, Health and Family Welfare minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla told the Vidhan Sabha during Question Hour here today.

Replying to a question by Kanwarjit Singh Brar (Cong), the minister said that 15 cases were registered against chemists this year (upto May) for selling 'habit forming drugs'. Of the 15 chemists booked, the licenses of five had been cancelled while the licenses of six had been suspended and prosecution orders had been issued against four, she added.

In 2005-06, prosecution was intiated in 21 cases out of the total 97 cases which were registered against chemists. In 2006-07, prosecution orders were issued against 22 chemists in the 164 cases which were registered.

Ms Chawla told the House that all civil surgeons of the state have been instructed to check the sale of habit forming drugs by chemists without prescription of registered medical practitioners on priority basis.

Chemists associations have been advised to instruct their members to practise self-discipline by prohibiting the sale of intoxicating drugs to the youth without prescription, and to maintain a proper sale and purchase records of such drugs, she added.

Awareness is being created by non government organisations amongst the public/society through media regarding the ill effects of intoxicants on the health of youth, she assured the assembly.

During the monthly meeting, the civil surgeons are being instructed to give personnel attention to the problem of drug abuse, she added.

Raids on chemists have been enhanced and personally monitoring of the action taken against erring chemists in the state is being done, she said.

Ms Chawla informed the House that stocks of habit forming drugs worth Rs 40 lakhs approximately were seized during raids in the last three-four years in the state and have been burnt in various districts. In Gurdaspur district, drugs worth Rs two lakh were destroyed while in Amritsar, Rs 13 lakh worth such drugs were destroyed.

Similarly in Ludhiana district, Rs 16 lakh worth drugs were destroyed and in Bathinda district, Rs four lakh worth such drugs were destroyed. In Sangrur district Rs five lakh worth drugs were put to the fire, she said.

UNI