Official apathy: No drug inspector to check expired medicines in Thar

Relief inspecting judge finds temporary drug inspector has not visited his office in two months.

MITHI: The desert region of Tharparkar, where over 500 children died in 2014 and 64 so far this month, due to the drought and dearth of health facilities, still lacks a drug inspector. This is despite numerous complaints regarding the use of substandard and expired medicines that have surfaced from time to time.

The Sindh High Court's (SHC) relief inspecting judge, Mian Fayyaz Rabbani, exposed the absence of the inspector, who exists only in the government record. On Wednesday, the judge visited the inspector's office and found that Abdul Hafeez Tunio, Badin's drug inspector who had been given the additional charge of Tharparkar, has not visited thr office for the last two months.

The judge told local reporters that Tunio had given his joining on November 17, 2014, and since then, he had never came to the office as far as the attendance record was concerned. The District Health Officer Dr Abdul Jaleel Bhurgari claimed that Tunio visits once a week because his original posting is at Badin.

"We have written to the government several times to post a permanent drug inspector but so far, the recommendation has not been addressed," he said.

On January 19, the judge visited a basic health unit (BHU) in village Bakhu, Mithi taluka, and noticed that expired vaccines were being administered to newborns. He then asked the district administration to register an FIR against the two vaccinators, Hussein and Amba Ram, for giving the expired dose.

Both of them, who belong to Peoples Primary Healthcare Initiative (PPHI) programme, admitted their guilt in the written statement to the judge who seized other expired vials. The judge also asked the district health authorities to include the BHU in-charge Dr Sunil Kumar in the inquiry.

Over the last year, judge Rabbani has recommended action against dozens of health officials for using expired or substandard medicines. But the health authorities rarely take action on his recommendations. The district administration has even not complied with his recent order to register an FIR against the vaccinators.

The health secretary and director general could not be contacted for their version regarding the posting of a permanent drug inspector.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 23^rd, 2015.