KARACHI, May 21: The ministry of finance has convened a meeting on Wednesday, in Islamabad to sort out the issue of consignments of medicines lying at the port for the last two months.

The issue has arisen when the importers refused to lift the consignments because of the 15 per cent GST as they say that they have opened LC and executed shipment prior to levy of the tax.

The invitation of meeting extended by joint secretary, finance division, Nazrat Bashir, is to be chaired by secretary general finance, Moeen Afzal.

Besides drugs importers and chemists, the high officials from other ministries, including member GST, Central Board of Revenue, secretary health division, secretary, finance and financial adviser, health division have been invited to the meeting.

Dr Mushtaq Noorwala, vice chairman, Pakistan Chemist and Druggist

Association (PCDA) told Dawn that anomalies have generated conflicting views on the imposition of GST on medicines and drugs. First of all there should be no GST or any another tax on medicines which are used by all classes.

However, the worst part of the entire system introduced for imposing GST on medicines, he said, was that there was no standard procedure under which the tax will be recovered.

Citing an example he said that whereas tablets and injections of ‘potassium chloride’ are exempted from GST but its syrup is not.

Similarly, he said the GST has been also imposed on the basis of strength and potency of medicines.

He said the government should take the matter seriously as medicines are directly linked with saving of human life and no delay should be made in resolving the matter.

The delay in clearing large consignments of medicines and drugs worth over Rs400 million have already created shortage of many life saving medicines in the domestic market creating hardship for patients and doctors who in many cases do not have alternate prescription to recommend, Dr Noorwala said.