Spurious Drugs And Kashmir

suprious Drugs nad Kashmir It is a heinous crime to manufacture and sell drugs that are sub standard or spurious. The menace needs to be checked at any cost, urges Mir Tariq Rasool-a KAshmir Based Journalist

"The unabated marketing of spurious drugs in J&K state has exposed public to grave health problems. What is compounding the situation is that the authorities are yet to take a serious view of the matter and initiate firm steps to check the menace. The role of many pharmaceutical companies in promoting spurious drugs has been established, but there has hardly been any legal action taken against the erring firms." This is what a social worker Muhammad Ramzan Shaiada, who regularly visits villages, hamlets, cities and towns to aware the people about the spurious drug trade and it hazardous effects on human life, says. Perhaps one of the most heinous crimes in the world is the manufacture and sale of harmful pharmaceuticals. The widespread sale of spurious drugs in Jammu and Kashmir places every member of the society at serious risk. No crime is acceptable to a civilized society, but some are certainly more harmful and heinous than others. The problem of spurious drugs is not only a regional issue, confronting Kashmir but developed countries also face this problem; like in U.S.A. approximately 8% of drugs sold are counterfeit, unapproved or substandard, according to a WHO reports. This problem is of global proportions: 8% of prescription drugs in the Philippines are counterfeit; in Cambodia, 60% of 133 drug vendors sold anti-malaria medications lacking the active ingredient; and 38% of the anti-malarial artesunate in South-East Asia including India is counterfeit Jammu and Kashmir shares its drug trade business with India and China, both of which are regarded as origin of spurious drugs, according to WHO report. India is the leading country in counterfeit drug production, having as much as 35% of the world production originating in this country. So in these circumstances what can be done? It is the question which needs attention. Jammu and Kashmir is among the states which are torn by strife, where everything is in a shambles. Unqualified and unknowledgeable men have established medical stores in Kashmir. To run a medical shop, one must be acquainted with the basics of the trade and the sciences involved in drug manufacture. He should be able to make distinction in the standard and sub-standard drugs. This facet of the pharmaceutical business in not adequately emphasized in this state. I have now been concerned about the menace of counterfeit and spurious drugs for long. It was when I went to cover the life of tribals, that I confronted the stark reality of spurious drugs. The malnourished tribal children were being administered drugs that no one had heard of. Most of the drugs being supplied there were sub-standard or spurious. The net work of the illegal trade is protected by some of the politicians and corrupt officers having vested interest. Sophisticated equipment is used to produce counterfeit drugs and even the experts cannot distinguish these from the genuine product. The government institutions like defense, hospitals, and dispensaries are the dumping ground for the large quantities of spurious drugs and therefore the drugs purchased for such places should be monitored and tested by an independent agency. The drug control department should form a separate intelligence wing to handle the spurious drugs menace and the staff should be trained in detecting the net work and nabbing the culprits. They should also have an adequate facility to handle the complaints regarding the spurious drugs and for testing the suspected samples.

To make the system more efficient, this facility should also be run by NGOs. The consumers are required to play pro-active role in protecting themselves and to help in nabbing the culprits Several worldwide measures have been suggested by the WHO to combat the menace in its 1999 report. They identified key factors for the existence of the practice. While most of these might not be relevant to state like Kashmir with undeveloped regulatory systems, spurious drug trade can be controlled here in Kashmir by applying applicable methods set by WHO: • Lack of legislation – the most obvious loophole in a country. When little or no legislation exists, it provides fertile ground for counterfeiters. Due to transparent geographical boundaries, counterfeiters easily set up shop in one country and can export to vulnerable countries. Kashmir is torn by turmoil, which helps self interested officials, pharmacists and businessmen to smoothly carry on the heinous job of spurious drug trade. It should be checked at the government level after framing a committee under chairmanship of an expert. • Weak or absent drug regulatory authority (DRA) – a comprehensive drug regulation mechanism must be in place, not only dealing with manufacturers, but also tracking down offending importers and distributors around the country. Drug regulatory authority should be made powerful enough to counter the menace. • Lack of enforcement of existing regulations –here in Jammu and Kashmir the measures and regulations remain limited to paper. Several factors are responsible for this, which includes the level of corruption in and lack of consciousness in the administrative setup of the State. • Transactions involving many intermediaries – the more points of exchange in the supply chain, the more chances of counterfeiters peddling their goods. The supply chains should be minimized on government level so that the chances of growing spurious drug trade should be minimized. In fact, many pharmacies in the country are trying to get their supplies directly from the manufacturer, to minimize chances of spurious products introduced in their stock. • High prices – high prices and inequities in access to prescription drugs are fertile grounds for cheaper spurious drugs to enter the market. This is a prevalent problem in the State and should be checked. • Sophistication of clandestine drug manufacture –the advancement in sophistication in the manufacture and packaging of drugs is easily available to the counterfeiters, who are now able to imitate the drug appearance almost perfectly. Drug counterfeiting is a threat that every person in every nation faces. By its nature of being invisible, it is very difficult to identify and combat. Governments and Drug Related Agencies (DRAs) must realize that by the time danger becomes visible, it might be too late. Unless serious thought and action are given to it immediately; it might seep into the system without damaging it beyond correction. While developing countries face the threat from direct sales, developed countries too face the same problem with online sales. In addition to this is the pseudo sense of security present in countries with stringent regulatory measures. As counterfeiters are becoming more advanced, it is becoming more difficult to identify them. The drug-counterfeiting situation is proving a race against time. In the State of Jammu and Kashmir where the government agencies and DRAs still lack equipments and methodology to check the menace, the government and nongovernment agencies should come forward to eradicate this menace in the society in order to avoid the destruction of life. Feedback at [email protected] e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it