KARACHI, Aug 17: The city government has stared to renew and register all drug sales outlets including wholesalers in a transparent manner to regularise this sector which is operating without any supervision.

Out of the estimated 15000 medical stores in Karachi, only 800 of them have been registered /renewed till now. The health department of the city government is hopeful that all of them will be brought under record within two years.

The new revised rate of for new registration is Rs200 and Rs100 for renewal both for the period of two years. According to Dr Pervaiz Sarwar, DO health department, more and more people are coming for registration and renewal and about 200 applications are being received by the department every month.

EDO health Dr Ali Nawaz Sheikh says there is no charm for owners of medical stores in any underhand deal with inspectors and it is hoped that the number will increase dramatically in the coming months with the nearing of the expiry date of the licenses renewed during the past two years.

Prior to the devolution system, the city consisted of five districts and the district health officers (DHOs) of the Sindh government’s health department were entrusted with the responsibility to register and renew medical stores’ licenses.

However, due to the manual system and improper exchange of data in the districts many irregularities were witnessed.

Drug inspectors were very powerful in their respective areas and people had little knowledge of the official procedures to get drug-selling outlets registered, so they had to bribe the staff at the DHO offices.

It is mandatory for all retail drug stores to appoint one paramedic or pharmacists at their outlets. In the previous system many paramedics or pharmacists, especially those working in the government health department, let their names be used in different retail stores.

Under the new system, six inspectors will look after three towns each of the 18 towns in Karachi. They are under DO Dr Pervaiz Sarwar who regularly checks all the records and listens to public complaints. An applicant is given license within 15 days of deposition.

After all outlets are registered, it will be easy to check the menace of quackery from Karachi with these outlets directed to sell drugs only on prescription from a registered medical practitioner by the PMDC (Pakistan Medical and Dental Council).

The health department of the city government has banned open and unrecorded sale of steroids, tranquillizers, anti-TB medicines and certain antibiotics.—PPI