RAWALPINDI: Minister for National Health Services (NHS) Aamer Mehmood Kiani on Sunday said amendments to the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (Drap) Act would be introduced in a couple of days.

“The draft has been approved by the cabinet and it will be enforced on Dec 27,” he told local traders and a delegation from pharmaceutical companies at the Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI).

Under the proposed law, he said, Drap would take major steps to bring the unregulated fields of herbal, alternative medicines and medical devices under its umbrella and create new rules for the products.

The minister said the PTI-led government under its first 100-day agenda had started revamping Drap and the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) to encourage merit and improve quality of medical education.

About the pharma industry, he said the future of this key industry was very bright as the government had made strong structural changes to its regulations and was providing facilitation to make it an autonomous body.

“But we also expect merit and responsibility from the stakeholders once it has reduced its stakes in the government.”

The minister said the government would establish five new hospitals in Rawalpindi and Islamabad to cater to the residents.

The president of the Pakistan Chemist and Druggist Association, Rawalpindi chapter, Malik Arshad Awan, spoke about the issues being faced by industrialists in Rawalpindi and said there were 300 industrial units in the Rawat Industrial Estate, including 100 pharmaceutical units, but they were facing shortage of electricity.

“As many as 35 new industrial units of pharmaceutical companies are not functional due the absence of electricity while the investment of billions of rupees is wasting. There is a dire need for a grid station for the industrial units,” he said.

The minister promised support and assistance from his ministry for resolving issues related to the pharma industry at the earliest.

He also assured them of his cooperation and support to fulfill RCCI’s demand for the allocation of a grid station and access road to the Rawat Industrial Estate.

Speaking on the occasion, RCCI President Malik Shahid Saleem thanked the health ministry for taking key initiatives to bring reforms in the healthcare and pharmaceutical sector.

Published in Dawn, December 24th, 2018