The centre’s PMBJP is an ambitious scheme which certainly provides generics at affordable rates but more efforts are required to make it really successful
Although Jan Aushadhi Kendra was considered as a new beginning and a ray of hope for the depressed and the people from the poor background. But the irony is that the different pharmacists’ shops are selling the medicines at exorbitant prices.
According to Sameer Ahmad one of the residents of Ganderbal, “at one place Pantaprazole tablet is available as 50 Rs, others sell it at 55 Rs with no receipt”
While on the other hand the genuine wholesale rate of the strip is only 14 Rs. Hence the selling of the Generic Medicines at one’s own will has devoid the people of any benefit from this scheme.
Another reality is that most of the medicines are out of stock most of the times. Its live example is that Saleem Ahmad a resident of Kangan, Ganderbal visited a Jan Aushadhi Kendra (JAK) to get clobazam and sodium valproate tablets. The storekeeper, however, told him that the medicines were out of stock. He then asked for thyroxine sodium tablets for his wife, but was unfortunate to even get that. Quite disappointed, he returned home empty-handed as he could not afford branded tablets.
Samreena, also a resident of Kangan, visited Trauma hospital Kanganin order to get antidiabetics for her mother. She said, “Medicines were out of stock, keeping her medicines in stock for next 15 days is a must because I do not know where to get the same medicines in their locality.” Additionally, she wasn’t able to get any medicines for her infant, who was suffering from fever and cough.
