Jalandhar resident flags lax licensing in medicine market

A Jalandhar resident has written to the state Health Minister, seeking strict implementation of norms in the district on the licensing of medical establishments as well as the sale and purchase of medicines.

In his letter to minister Dr Balbir Singh on October 1, Manohar Lal, retired SDO, Bhakhra Beas Management Board, Talwara, has sought that it should be ensured all medical establishments have licence retention letters and sale and purchase of medicines is ensured as per proper norms. The complainant's grievance is especially directed at the Dilkhusha Market - the largest wholesale medicine market in the region.

Medical establishments have a mandatory five-year period during which their licence stays valid, after which they must procure a licence retention letter. There are an estimated 2,500 to 2,600 medicine retail and wholesale traders in the district. While the department maintains establishments are regularly checked and licence retention letters for most of them renewed in a time-bound manner, the complaint states otherwise.

Resident Manohar Lal's letter to the minister alleges, "Most of the shops in Dilkhusha Market haven't put up their licence retention letters, nor is the medical stocks in these shops digital. Apart from this, these also mostly don't provide any bills. The government is thus being robbed of lakhs of its money."

The letter further states, "Whoever buys medicine, must be asked to furnish an Aadhaar card. And medicine traders must be directed not to sell any medicines without bills. The licence retention letter of the small medical halls and clinics in our localities must be checked. The PAN, email, shopkeeper's name and website, mobile number and name of the owner on whose name licence has been issued, must be publicly written at the shop."

The resident also demanded that all government and non-government hospitals must be checked frequently on the directions of the minister.

In his letter, he also sought regulation of fees of private hospitals, stating, "The state government must determine the fee of the private hospitals."

Before writing to the minister on October 1, a complaint was also submitted to the Civil Surgeon, Jalandhar, on August 24, by the same resident.