Hyderabad: Banned drugs are still sold on the outskirts

Hyderabad: The 344 medicines that were banned by the Centre in May 2016 continue to be sold even on the outskirts as also in the rural areas, drug officials said.

Pharmacists who are not linked to the state Pharmacy Council and shops which do not have registered pharmacists on the staff are not aware of these developments. They are not kept in the loop on announcements regarding medicines, officers said.

A senior drug inspector said more than 1,000 fixed dose combinations and 500 medicines which have been in the market for more than 25 years have been banned in phases. “While the government has announced the ban, its implementation on the ground has been minimal. Pharmacists should join the network and stop the sale of these drugs,” he said.

These medicines are available even in areas on the city outskirts like Hayathnagar, Sha-mshabad, Shamirpet and Rajendranagar. The shops had not returned the medicines to the  manufacturers, nor had the companies recalled them, an official said.

Mr Sai Kumar, a pharmacist, said, “Within the city limits the drug inspectors are very strict but on the outskirts the checking is done only from time to time. Therefore dumping of banned medicines in these areas continues.” He said the ban orders required an accurate system to understand it, which was not available in most small and medium pharmacies.

The fixed dose combinations were banned because of their side-effects and also because there was indiscriminate prescription.