45,000 medical shops in Telangana, yet no increase in drug inspectors, labs: DCA

Hyderabad: The number of medical shops has increased from 20,000 in 2014 to 45,000 in 2024, while no new drug testing laboratories have been established in the past decade and the number of drug inspectors has also remained the same, said Telangana DCA officials.

The shortage of Drugs Control Administration staff to conduct drug inspections and other related issues was discussed in a meeting with the minister for Health, Medical and Family Welfare, Damodar Raja Narasimha, at the Drug Control Authority office in Vengal Rao Nagar on Tuesday.

The meeting was also attended by a team from the Telangana Medical Services and Infrastructure Development Corporation (TGMSIDC). The officials discussed intensifying regulatory measures against the manufacturing and distribution of substandard and counterfeit medicines.

DCA conducted 21,639 inspections in 2024

The DCA officials briefed the minister on the findings from the 21,639 inspections held this year resulting in actions against 3,416 establishments, including medical shops, manufacturing units etc.

Single drug lab in Telangana limiting tests

The DCA officials highlighted a pressing limitation with the minister; only one drug testing lab in the State, established in 1956, which has a maximum testing capacity of 400 samples per month.

“This year, only 3,255 samples were tested due to capacity constraints. Notably, the number of medical shops has surged from 20,000 in 2014 to 45,000 in 2024, while no new drug testing laboratories have been established in the past decade, and the number of drug inspectors has remained static,” the DCA officials said in a statement.

Minister Damodar promises to open four labs, hire more inspectors

In response, the minister assured that steps would be taken to establish additional drug testing labs in Telangana. He instructed officials to prepare proposals for upgrading the current lab in Hyderabad and to establish four new laboratories to meet current requirements.

Additionally, he directed preparations to increase the number of drug inspectors from the existing 71 to a minimum of 150, as per Mashelkar Committee recommendations. He promised to take up the changes with chief minister A Revanth Reddy.

‘Take strict action against manufacture and sale of duplicate drugs’

The minister instructed DCA director-general VB Kamalasan Reddy to take stringent action against entities involved in the manufacture and sale of spurious drugs.

Emphasising the public health threat posed by such practices, he directed a comprehensive and intensified inspection drive across pharmaceutical manufacturing units, retail pharmacies and drugstores. Further, he advised the deployment of additional drug inspectors in regions with a high concentration of pharmaceutical companies to enhance oversight.

To prevent complacency and ensure impartial oversight, the minister instructed that drug inspectors be randomly assigned inspections outside their designated areas, promoting cross-district monitoring. Coordination between drug inspectors and district medical and health officers (DMHOs) was also emphasised for maintaining strict control over medicine prices and quality.

Combating habit-forming drugs

The minister underscored the importance of uncompromising standards in drug quality and directed the setup of complaint cells at district collectorates to facilitate easy filing of grievances regarding drug quality.

At the State level, he recommended establishing a State Vigilance Cell dedicated to handling complaints and conducting surprise inspections to identify violations promptly. The minister directed officials to tighten surveillance on pharmacies and establishments selling habit-forming drugs and to act against those flouting legal stipulations.

Ensuring quality in government hospitals

TGMSIDC, with support from the DCA, was instructed to rigorously monitor the procurement process of medicines supplied to government hospitals, conducting random sampling before and after procurement to ensure quality. Any non-compliance or identification of substandard medicines would result in the blacklisting of the concerned supplier.

Further, TGMSIDC’s Central Medical Stores should undergo regular inspections by drug inspectors to ensure proper storage conditions and adherence to standards for medicines supplied to government hospitals. The Health Department is committed to ensuring that patients in government hospitals receive only quality-assured medicines.

Prominent attendees at the meeting included health secretary Christina Z Chongthu, DCA DG VB Kamalasan Reddy, TGMSIDC MD Hemant Sahadeva Rao and DCA joint director G Ramdan.