2 weeks ago
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Karnataka has rolled out, what is being described as, the country’s archetypal technology-driven surveillance strategy to show the pharmaceutical market, enabling real-time detection of substandard medicines and tighter regularisation of narcotic and psychotropic drugs.
Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, who launched the caller integer platforms successful Bengaluru connected Thursday, said the inaugural would fortify cause prime control, amended transparency successful the proviso concatenation and support patients.
The State Food Safety and Drug Administration (FDA) has introduced 2 abstracted integer systems — 1 to automatically artifact the merchantability of medicines recovered to beryllium Not of Standard Quality (NSQ) and different to way dispensing of drugs covered nether the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Mr. Rao said ensuring the prime of medicines successful the marketplace was a captious responsibility, but tracing substandard drugs aft they entered circulation had agelong been a challenge.
“When medicines of mediocre prime participate the proviso chain, it is hard to place and halt their question immediately. About a twelvemonth ago, I had written to the Union Minister requesting a nationalist framework. As that has not materialised, Karnataka has taken the inaugural and introduced this system,” helium said.
Real-time fastener connected NSQ drugs
According to the department, astir 450 cause samples connected mean are recovered each twelvemonth to beryllium NSQ, meaning they neglect to conscionable prescribed ineligible and prime standards.
Such medicines cannot beryllium sold and indispensable beryllium recalled from manufacturers, wholesalers and stockists. In 2025-26, medicines worthy astir ₹1.85 crore were recalled aft being identified arsenic substandard.
Under the caller portal, erstwhile a cause batch is declared NSQ, it volition beryllium uploaded into the strategy and instantly locked, preventing immoderate further merchantability oregon transaction.
Alerts volition beryllium sent instantly to wholesalers and distributors crossed the State. The Minister said astir 15,000 wholesalers person already been registered connected the platform.
Data connected banal availability
The portal volition besides supply real-time information connected banal availability, stock-in-hand, and quantities returned to suppliers, helping regulators way compliance and velocity up recalls. The determination would importantly trim the hazard of poor-quality medicines reaching patients, helium said
Tighter monitoring of NDPS medicines
The 2nd portal focuses connected medicines regulated nether the NDPS Act, which are susceptible to misuse and diversion.
Retailers dispensing specified medicines volition present beryllium required to mandatorily upload and verify diligent details, doc details and medicine accusation earlier sale.
Mr. Rao said the strategy would assistance place antithetic patterns specified arsenic repeated prescriptions issued by the aforesaid doc oregon suspicious purchases by the aforesaid person.
The mechanics was intended to guarantee liable dispensing, forestall misuse of controlled medicines and fortify accountability astatine the retail level.
Shift to data-driven regulation
The 2 initiatives people a displacement towards integer and data-driven regularisation successful the pharmaceutical sector, wherever authorities tin enactment faster against unsafe medicines portion besides checking maltreatment of medicine drugs.
Food Safety and Drug Administration Commissioner Srinivas said Karnataka’s exemplary could go a template for wider adoption.
