Expired govt supply drugs dumped near Jawali rivulet

Rajiv Mahajan

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Nurpur, April 22

Instead of destroying them in a scientific way, a large quantity of expired medicines have been dumped in the open near a local rivulet near Batees Meel in Jawali subdivision of Kangra district. These medicines were meant for use in government healthcare institutions.

Hundreds of bottles of paracetamol syrup, tubes of clotrimazole, dipropionate, beclomethasone creams and diazepam injections have been dumped near the bank of the rivulet. These medicines containing the expiry dates of 2020 and 2021 have the ‘HP Government Supply, Not of Sale’ label.

The state government is spending a huge amount of money on providing medicines free of cost to patients visiting hospitals.

However, in some hospitals, patients have to purchase medicines from the market. It is evident in this case that the medicines were not provided to the needy patients and were thrown in the open after the expiry dates.

On getting information, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Kangra, sent a Health Department team led by Drug Inspector Minakshi Jaswal to the spot that collected samples of the expired medicines. Minakshi said that a report was prepared in the presence of some witnesses and it would be submitted to the higher authorities for further action.

Meanwhile, residents of Batees Meel and its surrounding areas urged the Health Department to immediately dispose of these drugs.