- To give new impetus to the “Drug Free Uttarakhand – 2025” campaign on the guidelines of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Health Secretary and Commissioner, Food Safety and Drug Administration (FDA) Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar conducted a surprise inspection of the FDA headquarters on Tuesday and closely reviewed the departmental works. During the inspection, the officials gave a detailed presentation on departmental activities. The Secretary clearly said that running the Chief Minister’s mission on a war footing is the top priority of the department and any kind of negligence will not be tolerated in this. Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar said that “Drug Free Uttarakhand – 2025” is not just a slogan under the leadership of the Chief Minister, but a concrete campaign running at the ground level, which aims to create a safe, healthy and drug-free society. *Action accelerated, concrete results* Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar said that the department is engaged on a war footing to realize the Chief Minister’s dream of ‘Drug Free Uttarakhand – 2025’. After the formation of the Quick Response Team, inspections and raids have gained momentum. So far, raids have been conducted on more than 450 medical stores, 65 manufacturing units have been raided and the remaining raids are in progress. Instructions have also been given to further intensify surveillance in areas bordering Nepal. The department is further intensifying coordination with STF, police and other departments to ensure effective action against narcotics and fake medicines. *Zero tolerance on fake medicines and drugs* Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar appeared very strict on the cases of fake medicines and narcotics. He directed that both the speed and scope of raids should be increased so that quick and strict action can be ensured against the culprits. He said that the quality of medicines is not only a matter of health but also of the trust of the society, so every medicine being sold in the market should meet safe and scientific standards. *Testing capacity increased with lab and mobile van* During the inspection, Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar also inspected the food and cosmetic labs. He took detailed information on the system of testing, action and reporting of samples and gave clear instructions that transparency and strictness should be maintained at every level. He told that at present the department has three mobile vans, through which samples are being collected from all places. In the next two to three months, 10 more modern mobile vans are going to be received. Approval has been received from the Government of India. Soon modern equipment will be installed in the lab located in Dehradun. Which will further speed up the tests. With the opening of the new lab in Dehradun, the testing of samples from the Garhwal region has already gained momentum. *New steps to strengthen enforcement work* Many important decisions were taken in the meeting to strengthen the departmental work. These include giving clear targets for enforcement work to the newly appointed 18 drug inspectors, bringing uniformity in the maintenance of records, ensuring effective advocacy of pending cases in the courts, organizing workshops for preparing cases and analysis and documentation. Along with this, instructions were given to prepare a Digital Repository and Coffee Table Book on departmental enforcement works, to make arrangements for effective tracing of repeated offenders and to strengthen enforcement by increasing surveillance in border districts – Chamoli, Pithoragarh and Champawat. *Future plans* The Secretary said that the next three months will be decisive for the department. After the deployment of 18 new drug inspectors, field work has gained momentum. Inter-state coordination will be further strengthened and data will be prepared by checking the distribution network of drug sellers. With the arrival of a lab equipped with modern equipment in the next two-three months, the process of checking the quality of medicines and food items will become faster and transparent
