Drug traders urge AP Govt to reduce power rate

Vijayawada, Jun 20(UNI) The Andhra Pradesh Chemists and Druggist Traders today urged Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhra Reddy to change the slab rate of electricity charges from commercial to domestic rate to reduce the burden of medical shops in order to extend good services to the consumers.

Krishna District Chemists and Druggists Association General Secretary R S Patnaik at a press conference here said the reduction was necessary as 40,000 chemists have to store sufficient quantity of vaccines and anti-biotic medicines in refrigerators.

As per GO 13/2005, all medical shops in the state having cold storage facilities, irrespective of business profits would have to pay power consumption at commercial rate, which he said was very high.

At a time when the business in retail medical shops were coming down due to stiff competition, fixing power rate under commercial head was 'unbearable,' he said.

The Andhra Pradesh Chemists and Druggist Association would meet Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and submit a memorandum in this regard on June 23, he added.

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