KARACHI, Oct 1: The Sindh health department has finalised the draft of a new drug licensing policy which would be made public within two weeks.
The new policy proposes BPharmacy as the minimum academic qualification for a drug licence holder and recommends Rs5,000 as a licence fee for new applicants and Rs3,000 as a renewal fee for one year.
Sources in the health department say the new policy authorises the chief drug inspector to issue licences, monitor pharmacy practices and nominate district level officials, adding that under the existing set-up the Executive District Officer Health has the authority given to him by the Sindh Secretary Health.
Amid strong criticism from civil society over mounting prices, the sale of substandard and smuggled medicines, the decision was taken in May. However, the policy was finalized after a lapse of five months and now it has been sent for printing.
Sindh Chief Drug Inspector Sallahuddin Tunio said the new policy would be made public for objections and suggestions within two weeks after which it would be submitted to Sindh Chief Minster Arbab Ghulam Rahim for formal approval.
Giving the present position of the issuance of drug licences, he said though new licences had not been issued since the ban imposed by the authorities concerned, renewal of the old ones was still under way.
Rejecting all allegations about the issuance of licenses and corruption in the department, he said “We have many cases against non-licensed sellers of medicines in our lone Drug Court of Sindh but have no single complaint and evidence against our drug inspectors.”
Staff shortage
Mr Tunio said it was impossible for the drug inspection authority to seal any illegal medical store or monitor unethical and criminal acts with only 26 drug inspectors (i.e. one inspector for 700 medical stores on an average). Under the Sindh Drug Licensing Policy, he said, the proposed ratio was one inspector for the monitoring of 250 drug stores.
Issuing authority
EDO Health Dr A.D. Sajnani said he only had the authority to issue licences but neither any authority nor resources to conduct raids.
He said new licenses had not been issued since May as the provincial government was working on a new policy. Subsequently, he said, the delay had bothered importers and wholesalers to some extent.
When asked about the complaints that some general-cum-medical stores were selling life saving drugs, sleeping pills and medicines for hypertension and other serious illnesses without obtaining any licences, he said there was not a single unlicensed medical store in the city.—PPI
