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New Delhi : Union Minister for Chemicals & Fertilizers and Parliamentary Affairs Ananth Kumar while addressing the media on the achievements under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) here on May 12, 2017, said the scheme is creating a silent revolution in achieving health security by providing affordable, quality medicines to all.
“Today India is the World’s Pharmacy and our Pharma sector is growing at a pace of 20-21% and India is exporting quality generic medicines to 215 countries,” the Minister said. He said that following PM Narendra Modi’s vision of providing affordable, quality medicines to all, the government has made health security for all citizens its priority. Through this scheme, the government is planning to take affordable medicines to each block of the country in near future, he added.
The Minister informed that as on date, 1,320 PMBJP Kendras (PMBJKs) are functioning in the country in the 30 states/UTs, covering 426 districts, as compared to only 80 opened between 2008 and 2014. The turnover in the beginning of the scheme was around Rs 3 crore, which would increase to around Rs 60 crore by end of this year, he said. He said that MoUs for opening PMBJKs have been signed by Union Government with 19 state governments and other organisations/NGOs. A total of 32,225 applications had been received of which in-principle approval has been given to 30,300 applications, Kumar added, according to a PIB release.
Answering to a question on prescription of generic medicines by doctors, the Minister informed that due to sustained efforts of the ministry, the Medical Council of India (MCI) recently issued a directive to all medical colleges, hospitals, doctors across the country and made it mandatory to prominently mention Generic names of drugs along with Brand Names in their prescriptions, in pursuance of which strict disciplinary action may be taken against the violators, according to the PIB release.
In order to encourage doctors to prescribe generic medicines, the MCI had amended the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002, on October 8, 2016, advising the use of generic name of drugs in doctor’s prescription, Kumar said.
Kumar said that the Railways ministry has come on board to open Janaushadhi kendras at over 1000 railway stations across the country in collaboration with Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers.