Branded drugs being sold at Tanda Jan Aushadhi store

Lalit Mohan

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, June 20

The Jan Aushadhi store on the premises of the Tanda medical college in Kangra is selling branded medicines in violation of the norms.

The store was opened in 2011 to provide generic medicines to patients as these are an affordable alternative to costlier, patented and branded medicines.

Although the Tanda medical college authorities are aware of the fact, they have failed to take any action against the erring officials and instead efforts are being made to hush up the matter.

Sources said a pharmacist was hired on a three-year contract to sell medicines on behalf of the Tanda medical college administration at a 1 per cent commission. The contract of the pharmacist was to end in 2013, but he has been getting extension every year.

In 2017, the then college principal found that branded medicines are being sold at the store and the stock worth Rs 30 lakh was recovered.

During an internal investigation, it come to light that the medicines were purchased by the college administration only, which later supplied these to the pharmacist for sale. When the issue was highlighted, the college administration asked the pharmacist to return the medicines to the respective dealers. However, the dealers refused to take the medicines back.

The medicines were later distributed in wards of the medical college on a plea that it would expire if not used.

However, the pharmacist and the college administration are now shifting the blame on each other for the sale of branded medicines at the store.

The college administration has been maintaining that the indent for the purchase of medicines was moved by the pharmacist. On the other hand, the pharmacist said it was the duty of the medical college to procure generic medicines and supply the same to him.

The college principal, Dr Bhanu Awasthi, however, refused to comment on the matter. Sources said the previous principal, Dr Ramesh Bharti, was shifted as he tried to re-auction the shop. He had now been posted as the Advisor of the Director, Research and Medical Education. The post had been created for the first time in the state, they added.

Dr Swatantra Mahajan, convener of the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee medical department, said it had also come to their notice that a same medicine was being sold at different price at three government shops at Tanda — a Jan Aushadhi store, a shop being run by the Food and Civil Supplies Department and the recently opened Amrut shop. He demanded a high-level probe into the scam.