Shimla, (UNI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, while presiding over a review meeting of the Health Department today, directed officers to prepare a new Essential Drugs List to ensure the availability of quality medicines for patients in government health institutions.
He said that the proposed list would be examined and approved by a High Power Committee.
The Chief Minister stated that shifting towards direct procurement of medicines from manufacturers was not merely a cost-saving exercise but a strategic initiative to eliminate delays caused by intermediaries and to ensure a transparent and efficient supply chain.
He said that bypassing middlemen would help the State maintain a consistent and adequate stock of life-saving drugs, for which necessary provisions would be made.
Emphasizing the need for strict quality assurance, Sukhu directed that the existing mechanism for sampling and quality testing of medicines supplied to government health institutions be further strengthened.
He said that dedicated quality testing cells would be established in each medical college across the State, with adequate staff, training and essential equipment provided by the government.
In the first phase, such cells would be set up at Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC), Shimla, and Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College (RPGMC), Tanda.
The Chief Minister also instructed officers to ensure stringent quality checks of medicines manufactured by pharmaceutical companies in Himachal Pradesh.
He directed strict enforcement of the provisions of Schedule-M under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, across the state and reiterated that no compromise would be made with patients’ health.
