The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has urged the Punjab government to amend the provincial drug act in line with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States of America to save the local pharma industry. The LCCI President Abdul Basit, in a letter to the Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahabaz Sharif, said the entire pharmaceutical trade and industry is under serious threat of insecurity and harassment since the last few months due to the enactment of Punjab Drugs Amendment Act 2017.
Under the amended act, all violations (minor/major) have been made cognizable offence. The inspectorate has been made more powerful, while spurious drugs have been bracketed together with substandard/out of spec drugs, for deviation from required storage conditions. Besides, maximum imprisonment and fine like worst offence have been prescribed whereas punishment has been made more stringent and increased manifold, he pointed out.
On February 13, 2017, there was almost complete strike and shutter down in Punjab leading to disruption in drugs supply chain. On next day, the Punjab Law Minister Rana Sana Ullah and Punjab Minister for Excise and Taxation gave categorical assurance on behalf of Punjab government to 14 organizations representing all stakeholders that the Punjab Drug Act would be brought at par with the developed countries or the FDA of the USA, Abdul Basit added.
Both the minister also assured that all those clauses in the drug act would be deleted which do not exist in the FDA, he said. It appears that due to certain pressure, the authorities have not so far agreed to many proposals given by the trade and industry in accordance with the FDA which is a great source of anxiety and discomfort to all segments of pharma industry and trade, he added.
He asked the chief minister to help redress the issues faced by the pharma industry that has tremendous potential to develop and it is prepared to sincerely support the government's initiatives to improve drug delivery on scientific and rational basis.