Strengthening the state-wide efforts to contain the drug menace in the state, Punjab Government has set up a dedicated complaint number and e-mail address to report the sale of illicit drugs in medical stores.
Informing this, the state Food and Drug Administration Commissioner KS Pannu said that under Tandrust Punjab Mission, a mobile telephone number 098152-06006 and an email id — punjabdrugscontrolorg@gmail.com — have been set up for the people to report against the sale of prohibited or habit-forming drugs by the chemists.
The identity of the complainant will be kept absolutely discrete and undisclosed, assured Pannu.
Urging the people to join the combat against the drugs, he said that there are nearly 16,000 medical stores in the State that dispense medicine to the public.
“Most of the stores adhere to the norms prescribed by Commissionerate of Food and Drug Administration and sell legally permitted medicine. In fact, teams of the Commissionerate regularly inspect medical stores to check the sale of habit forming drugs. But, some black sheep in the trade hoodwink the system and in the garb of medical store, sell the prohibited drugs,” said Pannu pointing that to decimate the sale of habit forming drugs from the medical stores, local inputs and support of people is must.
Pannu requested the people to use the complaint number to report every irregularity in the Drugs and Cosmetics Act that come into their notice in terms of sale of prohibited drugs, so that the illicit activity may be controlled.