No one would be allowed to manufacture, import or export alternative medicines after October 1st unless approval has been obtained from the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP). According to an official of Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Co-ordination, there would be no compromise on safety, efficacy and quality of finished products.
He said now thousands of applications have been received by DRAP, adding, after the expiration of this period applications will be evaluated and manufacturing facilities will be verified for compliance to the regulatory standards. He said practitioners of various categories of alternative medicines like Hakim, Vaid and Homeopath do not come under the DRAP Act 2012 and not to be regulated under these rules. He said that necessary public notice had been issued inviting applications for enlistment of manufacturers, importers and their products.
The date was extended up to October 1, 2014, for filing applications keeping in view the diversity of this sector. He said that the present government has seriously taken the matter and passed directions for making rules and enactment of rules to regulate this sector for larger public interest called Alternative Medicines and Health Products (Enlistment) Rules 2014. Currently all the products pertaining to alternative medicines including herbal, unani, homeopathy and health products have been regulated under said rules. He said alternative medicine industry was running unregulated till the promulgation of Drug Regulatory Authority` Act 2012.