The Drug Controller General of India’s ambitious proposal to strengthen the regulatory mechanism at the Central and State level to ensure safe, efficacious and quality standards drugs continues to remain a non-starter with the Union Finance Ministry yet to release the fund of `200 crore meant for the purpose for 2015-16.
The undue delay will only compromise the health of the patients in the country, said a senior Health Ministry official which supervises the functioning of the DCGI.
The proposed financial outlay is meant to be utilised for manpower augmentation, creation and upgradation of labs, setting up of new offices of drugs regulatory control, strengthening pharmacovigilance and creating awareness among people both care givers and receivers regarding safe drugs both at the Centre and in the States, the official said.
Keeping in view the recommendations of various committees and reports and based on the DCGI needs, it is important that the Finance Ministry releases the funds at the earliest for infrastructural development, both physical and human resource, at the Centre as well as in the States.
“We have been repeatedly reminding the Finance Ministry to hasten the release of funds for strengthening of drugs regulatory mechanisms, but in vain,” said the official asserting that delay in release will only delay proposed tasks.
He said, expecting funds, as many as 18 States have already signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the DCGI to strengthen the existing set-up of surveillance system and increase consumer awareness about current and new drugs safety and quality related threats in their region.
“However, with no fund coming from the Centre, now all their plans are in limbo,” the official said.
The funds will also be utilized for providing financial and human resource support to the States, as under the Centrally sponsored scheme.
This is the first time that States have signed such a pact with the centre. So far around 18 states and Union Territories have done so including Haryana, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The proposed financial outlay also aims for manpower augmentation, creation and upgradation of labs, setting up of new offices of drugs regulatory control and strengthening pharmacovigilance at the Centre and in the States.
The MoU is the part of a new centrally sponsored scheme under National Health Mission (NHM) umbrella wherein fund has been proposed with 75:25 sharing pattern for providing financial and human resource support to the States / UTs. This is also for the first time that the Central Government will monitor the fund utilsation in the states quarterly.
Under the Scheme there would be requirement of `1079 crores spread over next five years, in which the States share would be of `229 crores and the Central Government share would be of `850 crores. The components of expense heads approved relates to up-gradation of State labs, expansion of existing offices, manpower accommodation and creation of new labs or mobile labs.