Medicine shortage by 40 pc : MSDA
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, May 18 2023:
While stating that panic buying in addition to vehicles carrying medicines getting stranded along the highways has resulted in shortage of medicines by about 40 percent of the usu-al stock, Manipur Chemists and Druggists Association (MCDA) has urged the state government to take note of the matter at the earliest.
Addressing a press meet at MCDA office in Gambhir Singh Shopping Complex, BT Road here on Thursday, Association president RK Rakesh Singh said that the communal vio-lence since May 3 has greatly impacted the masses.
Stocks of life-saving medicines par-ticularly tablets for diabetes, hypertension and other ail-ments have almost depleted after the public resorted to panic buying when the clashes were first reported, with many purchasing medicines for 2-3 months.
Urging the masses to buy only the required medicines, he also appealed to the gov-ernment to take serious note of the medicine shortage, add-ing that the situation could worsen in the next 3-4 days.
|
MCDA general secretary Thokchom Dijamani Singh, who also attended the press meet, said that the issue has been brewing for the past 15 days but the government is yet to consider the impact on medicine-related aspects.
At present, around 12 trucks car-rying medicines are stranded in between Mao and Senapati and some at Mao, while 14 trucks from Guwahati are yet to arrive.
Some wholesalers are facing shortage by about 60 percent, with the overall shortage at around 40 percent.
Although there is no prob-lem with regard to insulin, there is shortage of oral dia-betic tablets, and tablets for BP, kidney and other ailments.
After talking to some compa-nies, some medicines were airlifted to the state in the past 1-2 days.
But the medicines airlifted are only 20 percent of the required quota, he con-veyed.
Stating that the health min-ister had been apprised of the medicine shortage, Dijamani remarked that no action has been taken up till date.
Thus, he appealed to the authority concerned to take up steps to ensure the medicine-carrying trucks reach lmphal.
He then said that while the prices of petrol and oth-er items have increased due to the violence, the prices of the medicines have remained constant despite the shortage.
Some medicines are also be-ing sold below the MRP, he informed, adding that they are carrying out direct hu-manitarian service.