Editorial
Lethal Presence
A front page picture in the Ittefaq Tuesday last sent the chilling sensation through the spine once again : an unused ampoule of an injectable drug with an expiry date of October 1997. The frightening discovery came to light when a doctor on duty prepared to break an ampoule to inject the drug into a patient. Reportedly three packets of the said drug, each containing 25 ampoules, were bought by the relevant section of the DMCH from an adjacent pharmacy.
Tuesday's finding is neither unique nor rare. There have been several reports in the past on expired drug being on sale in the market. How these drugs find their way to the druggists' shelves and freezers and in the hospitals is not unknown to the authorities. About hospitals some doctors have suggested an unholy nexus between the lower tier employees of the facility and the unethical businessmen. That is definitely one area where the authorities need to probe but the biggest problem lies elsewhere. It is the weak drug ordinance which has come to dilute all our worries and caution against this enormous crime. The laws of the land are not sufficiently deterrent to scare people away. At the moment if somebody is found to be trading in spurious drugs, he or she simply does not have to pay heavily. The key to any alleviation of the problem lies in planting fear in culprits' minds. The laws have to be firmed up and, more importantly, enforced with unfailing consistency. The lax laws and authorities' blasé attitude over the matter show how infinitesimal is the concern about public health and how much a thin ice we are all skating on. There was quite a bit of hot air blown around the drug ordinance during the previous government but nothing came out of it. The present government seems to be on the same course although pompous claims of enforcement have been made. We want to say mere claims and assurances would not do. Spurious and expired drugs were there and they are there. They have to go. The health ministry would do well to remember that it is and it will be held responsible for every ailment or death due to the use of unfit drugs. Let it stir into action to tackle whatever challenges that responsibility might ask for.
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