January 12, 2002	Saturday	Shawwal 27, 1422

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DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Jan 11: Smuggled Iranian and Indian drugs have flooded Dera Ismail Khan making it an open market for the medicines of the two countries.

Whereas Pakistani and multinational pharmaceutical firms are competing each other in a race of high prices.

Sources at the local chemists and druggists association say that a large quantity of medicines are smuggled into the city from Miranshah (North Waziristan Agency) and Wana (South Waziristan Agency) every week. These drugs, almost 10 times cheaper to the same made in Pakistan, are supplied to wholesalers and distributors to fulfil the high demand of medical stores.

The sources say national and foreign pharmaceutical companies offer heavy bribes to the health ministry officials for registering products having high rates.

These expensive drugs made countrymen buy smuggled medicines depriving the national exchequer of various duties and taxes, they add.