Paswan for death penalty to those selling fake drugs

Nagpur, July 27 (UNI) Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers, and Steel Ram Vilas Paswan has said those manufacturing and selling fake drugs should be awarded the death penalty.

Speaking to newspersons here shortly after inaugurating the new administrative building complex of the public sector Manganese Ore India Limited (MOIL), Mr Paswan said the culprits deserved capital punishment as they endangered the lives of innocent people.

He would raise the issue before the Union Cabinet when the matter comes up for discussion, Mr Paswan said, but added that it was his personal opinion. The issue was primarily related to the Ministry of Health and the state governments, and his Ministry only monitored the prices of drugs, he pointed out.

All state governments must launch a drive to bust factories manufacturing fake drugs, Mr Paswan said. The manufacturing licence to the factories are issued by the state governments, he pointed out.

Mr Paswan said his Ministry had submitted a proposal to the government to bring 354 life-saving drugs under control. More drugs were sought to be brought under control to ensure the safety of the public, he said. At present, only 74 drugs were under control, the Minister said.

Earlier, Mr Paswan inaugurated the new building of MOIL, built on 3.45 acre of land and having 75,500 square feet of built-up area, which has been constructed at a cost of Rs 7.86 crore.

After inaugurating the building, Mr Paswan said the steel sector produced 45 million tonnes of steel annually, which was expected to go up to 80 million tonne by 2010 and 200 million tonne by 2020.

Manganese was a prime ingredient in the production of steel, and, therefore, MOIL could make a vital contribution in the growth of the steel sector, he added.

UNI