Punjab Assembly passes resolution against 'exorbitantly-priced medicines'
Darpan News Desk IANS, 09 Mar, 2023 04:07 PM
Chandigarh, March 9 (IANS) The Punjab Assembly on Thursday unanimously passed a non-official resolution to take up the matter of fleecing common people by exorbitantly priced medicines with the Central government.
The resolution was moved by MLA Charanjit Singh during the ongoing budget session of the Assembly here.
After the reply by Health and Family Welfare Minister Balbir Singh, all members present in the House passed the non-official resolution to recommend this matter to the Central government.
During his reply, Balbir Singh appreciated the resolution moved by Charanjit Singh and said the issue was already in his mind.
He said even he had recently brought this matter into the notice of Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who visited Patiala a few days back.
He said cancer drugs have already been regulated by the government, but non-scheduled drugs and e-pharmacies are yet to be regulated.
He said till these drugs get regulated the easiest way to provide affordable medicines to the common people is by opening maximum 'Jan Aushadhi Kendras' in the state.
He said there are 25 Jan Aushadhi Kendras in the state and 16 more have been approved, which will be opened soon. He also urged all MLAs to maximum exhort people to open these centres in their constituencies, which will not only provide affordable medicines to the common people, but will also help generating employment.
"Health is fundamental right of every person and it is the duty of the state and the Central government to provide world-class quality healthcare managed and funded by the government," said Balbir Singh, while adding Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led government is committed to provide the holistic healthcare facilities in the state.
Balkaur Singh, whose son was shot dead in daylight on May 29 close to his Moosa village in Punjab on May 28, had complained of uneasiness on Thursday night following which he was admitted to a private hospital in Patiala from where he was shifted to the PGIMER here.
Majithia told the media here that this was also necessary because the AAP government had neither made the FIR registered in this case public even after 24 hours, nor taken any action against any BJP leader or middlemen involved.
The matter came to the fore after the victim narrated the ordeal to her parents who rescued her and later approached the Women police station at Gurugram's Sector-51 and registered a case against the accused on Wednesday. The victim told the police that she had met Pooja at a Gurugram mall a month ago. Pooja had offered her a job at a doctor's clinic.
The local people and Bishal's family members claimed that he was found with multiple wounds on Wednesday. It is alleged that Bishal was killed for not agreeing to convert to Christianity in order to marry his tribal girlfriend. Though the police are yet to confirm whether the youth was killed or committed suicide, they have arrested five people in connection with the case.
According to a source with the Ministry, the diplomats see it as a question of credibility and said that such tall claims should be avoided as it hurts the credibility of the country and the government too. The source said that it has left the diplomats embarrassed.
During the intervening night of September 13 and 14, on a specific intelligence input, the ICG strategically deployed two fast interceptor class of ships, C-408 and C-454 for patrolling in areas close to the IMBL. During midnight, the Pakistani boat was observed moving suspiciously in Indian waters, 5 nm inside notional IMBL and 40 nm from Jakhau.
