Health minister finds expired medicines worth ₹50 lakh at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, orders probe

The minister sought explanation as to why those medicines could not be returned back to the manufacturing firms

Deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak who also holds the health portfolio, has ordered probe into the issue of expired medicines worth ₹50 lakh found stocked at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences here on Thursday.

Deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences on Thursday. (Sourced pic)

The minister reached Lohia institute campus on Thursday and started looking for expired medicines right from the drug distribution counters and scanned record kept in store room. During his inspection for around 45 minutes, he finally counted 322 pages having list of expired medicines worth ₹50 lakh.

Irked over the issue, the minister asked about who was responsible for this. He also sought explanation as to why those medicines could not be returned back to the manufacturing firms to get other medicines in exchange. But none of the officials, including director of the institute Dr Soniya Nityanand, could give any satisfactory reply to his query.

In all, a list of 2,48,668 expired medicines were found that were kept there for over last 5 years.

Meanwhile, GS Priyadarshi, secretary medical education, will head the probe at Lohia institute, said a press statement from the minister’s office. Probe will focus upon why were these medicines not given to patients or returned to the manufacturing firms to get other medicines in exchange.

“Lohia hospital purchases medicines via revolving fund. This system provides medicine to patients at cheaper rates. But neither the patients got these medicines nor could they be returned back,” said the minister.

Pathak later met patients and took stock of services including food being provided to them on the campus.