Substandard Drugs Manufacturing: Himachal Pradesh High Court Seeks Status On Testing Labs

The Himachal Pradesh High Court on Wednesday issued notices to the Central and State governments on the issue of manufacturing of substandard and spurious drugs in the State.

A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Virender Singh was dealing with a petition filed by the NGO People for Responsible Governance pointing to the absence of adequate drug testing laboratories in Himachal Pradesh which in turn has led to the sale of inferior and counterfeit drugs by multiple manufacturers in the market.

The petitioners claimed that Himachal Pradesh houses the largest drug manufacturing industry in Asia, with its drugs being widely consumed both within India and abroad. However, the lack of regulatory checks on these manufacturing plants has led to numerous complaints from various parts of India and even foreign countries regarding substandard drugs causing harm to innocent consumers, it is alleged.

Rajnish Maniktala, the senior counsel representing the petitioner, argued that the industrial belt in Himachal Pradesh consists of drug manufacturers of various sizes. Unfortunately, these manufacturers often neglect proper drug testing and directly release their products into the market, resulting in the tragic loss of innocent lives, he argued.

The petitioner strongly urged the court to direct government authorities to ensure that licenses for drug manufacturing are not issued or renewed unless the manufacturer has established a Quality Control Department on their premises. The Drug Department department should encompass separate sections for chemical, instrumentation, microbiological, and biological testing, as mandated by the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, the petitioner argued.

After hearing the petitioner at length the bench directed the respondents to impart instructions with regard to utilization of a sum of Rs. 30 crores which had been sanctioned by the Central Bank for setting up a lab way back in the year 2017, status with regard to another testing lab that was being set up by in 2014 and the civil work which was alleged to have completed at the cost of Rs. 3.25 crores, that too, five years back.

The bench further directed the respondents to file a comprehensive reply dealing with each and every averments as made in the petition, alongside the information as to how many posts of Drug Inspectors are lying vacant and what steps are being taken to fill up the same.

The matter accordingly has been listed on June 28 for further consideration.

Case Title: People for Responsible Governance (Pergo) Vs. Union of India & others.

Counsel For Petitioner: Mr. Rajnish Maniktala, Senior Advocate with Mr. Naresh Kumar Verma, Advocate

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