With more and more people preferring Indian System of Medicine (ISM) for treatment, Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) Friday expressed shock over the supply of substandard Ayurvedic drugs to government hospitals in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
President DAK Dr Nisar ul Hassan in a statement said “it is unacceptable that patients go to hospitals with a hope to get medicines but instead are provided poison in the form of spurious drugs.”
“Five drugs, Kanchnar guggulu, Prostate forte, Systonex syp, Jaytyadii taila and Rajparvartinvati which were lifted from various hospitals and stores in September this year from Jammu, Samba and Kathua were found to contain fungus and declared unsafe for human consumption,” he said.
These drugs, Dr Nisar said were procured and supplied by ISM department bypassing Jammu and Kashmir Medical Supplies Corporation ((JKMSL) which was created to do away with the corrupt purchase committees and curb the menace of spurious drugs.
“Despite being declared substandard, these drugs continue to be in hospitals and stores,” Dr Nisar said adding “and, we can’t know how many precious lives might have been lost because of these drugs as patient is always presumed to have died from a disease rather than these drugs.”
The menace of spurious drugs spreading to ayurvedic, unani and homeopathic medicines is a matter of grave concern as many patients rely on these medicines, Dr Nisar said.
“Be it fever, cough and cold, constipation or diarrhea, arthritis and urine problem, the ayurvedic medicines are in great demand with patients,” he said.