New drug and equipment procurement system in offing

Bhubaneswar, Jul 10 (UNI) In a bid to maintain transparency, the Orissa government would soon introduce a new system for the procurement of drugs and equipment, Minister for health and family welfare Sanatan Bisi said here today.

The new system is designed on the lines of Tamil Nadu drug procurement policy, he said.

Talking to newspersons after meeting a delegation of the DFID here, Mr Bisi said DFID would provide Rs 400 crore over a period of five years for strengthening Orissa Health Sector Plan(OHSP).

The DFID had already released Rs 42 crore during the financial year 2007-08. The entire money would be in shape of grant-in-aid, and would be utilised as budgetary support to the state government's health budget, he said.

The Minister said as many as 1162 ayurvedic and homeopathic doctors would be recruited within a month to strengthen the health care system in the state.

''At least one doctor either a homeopath or ayurvedic doctor would be appointed in single doctor PHC,'' he said.

The Minister said steps would be taken to streamline the drugs control administration and Orissa Public Service Commission was requested to fill up 20 Drug Inspector posts immediately, adding the drugs controllers office in each district would be strengthened for effective enforcement of the system.

He said the e drugs testing laboratory would be upgraded.

Mr Bisi said the state ranked number one in the field of institutional delivery in the country.

As per a survey conducted by DFID the number of institutional deliveries went up from 35 per cent to more than 61 per cent over a period of one year only.

The infant mortality rate declined by around 19 per cent during 2001 to 2006 and the rate of child malnutrion declined from 54 per cent to 44 per cent between 1999 and 2006, the Minister said.

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