Health Dept’s regional warehouse in Karnal runs out of antibiotics, painkillers, syrups...

Parveen Arora

Karnal, March 5

The Health Department’s Regional Drug Warehouse in Karnal, responsible for storing and supplying essential medicines to Karnal, Panipat and Kurukshetra districts, is currently grappling with a severe shortage of essential medicines, raising concerns about the healthcare infrastructure in these districts.

Only 180 items available

There are nearly 540 essential medicines in the list of the department, but only 180 items are available at the warehouse, which are not enough for the increasing number of patients at government hospitals

Distributed at 7 Drug Warehouses

Haryana Medical Services Corporation Ltd., Panchkula, purchases and supplies medicines across the seven regional drug warehouses of the state. As soon as we receive the medicine, we distribute these as per the requirements of the districts concerned. — Dr Manjeet Singh, Manager, Regional Drug Warehouse, Karnal.

No option but to procure locally

We have no option but to depend on local procurement so that the medecines are available at the hospitals, but it is not enough as per the requirement. We also have a limited budget for private purchasing. — An official of the department

Medicines including antibiotics, painkillers, cough syrups, dressing materials, consumable drug items, which are used for indoor patients, surgery patients and others, are out of stock for the past several months, forcing the district health authorities to buy these from private firms, which is an extra burden on the Health Department.

As per the information collected by The Tribune, there are nearly 540 essential medicines in the list of the department, but only 180 items are available at the warehouse, which are not enough for the increasing number of patients in government hospitals. “We have no option but to depend on local procurement so that the medecines are available at the hospitals, but it is not enough as per the requirement. We also have a limited budget for private purchasing,” said an official of the department. Due to the shortage of such drugs at the pharmacy of the government hospitals, patients have to buy these from the open market, which is an extra burden on them, an official added. The health authorities are hopeful that the stock of the remaining medicines will come shortly.

“Haryana Medical Services Corporation Ltd., Panchkula, buys and supplies medicines across the seven regional drug warehouses of the state. As soon as we receive the medicine, we distribute these as per the requirements of the districts concerned,” said Dr Manjeet Singh, Manager, Regional Drug Warehouse, Karnal.

“The Civil Surgeon office can purchase medicines from the market, for which the authorities have to obtain a non-availability certificate from the warehouse if we do not have the medicine. The Civil Surgeon office does not require any non-availability certificate for medicines included in the emergency medicine list,” he added.

An official of the HMCL said they floated tenders online, but due to the absence of competition and good companies as well as higher rates quoted by the companies, it could not materialise. “To ensure good quality, sometimes tenders have to be cancelled. We have purchased most of the medicines which are under test and trial. Soon these will be delivered to the warehouses in the field,” he added.