Drug Scam in Kashmir, Fake Drugs Supplied to Hospitals.
Demanding the immediate arrest of former Health Minister Sham Lal Sharma and others allegedly involved in spurious drug scam, Civil Society Kashmir (CSK) Thursday held a massive protest rally from Sher-i-Kashmir Park to Press Enclave Srinagar. Meanwhile, South Kashmir Civil Society (SKCS) expressed deep anguish on the supply of spurious drugs and took out a march in Anantnag in which people from different walks of life participated.
Hundreds of people along with Civil Society members participated in the march and demanded stern action against the culprits.
Hundreds of policemen were deployed to maintain peace and order during the rally. All the traffic was diverted to Maulana Azad Road while scores of policemen acted like a wall near Press Enclave not paving a way for protestors to move towards Lal Chowk.
The Civeil Society members were holding banners and placards depicting anti-drug mafia slogans.
Civil Society members during their address in Press Enclave castigated the state government for its complete failure in booking the culprits involved in the drug scandal.
Holding Sham Lal Sharma, Central Purchasing Committee (CPC) members, Directorate Health Service, Principals Government College Kashmir and Jammu directly responsible for supplying fake drugs to Valley hospitals, CSK members alleged that government is also a part of this conspiracy. “We demand that a judicial supervision of the probe ordered by state government be held to bring the culprits including Sham Lal Sharma to book. We have reached at this conclusion that ministers and bureaucrats are involved in this drug trade and it aimed to kill people of Kashmir silently,” Advocate G.N.Shaheen said.
“There has been well-founded and deep suspicion for quite some time now among the people that they are being fed with spurious drugs which prove more harmful to patients than no drugs at all. This revelation is only a tip of the iceberg and last year’s high mortality of infants in GB Pant Hospital forms a link in the same chain which has been buried with impunity,” Prof Hameeda Nayeem said.
She said the government has “failed to monitor the quality of drugs available in government hospitals and with private pharmacies.” “The government has also failed to furnish a separate list of genuine and spurious drugs available in the hospitals and private pharmacies for the benefit of the patients,” she said.
Renowned Civil Society members while expressing concern over the issue termed it as a criminal negligence on part of the government and said that a state which has the highest consumption of drugs lacks the facility of Quality Control Analytical Laboratory for testing the genuineness of drugs. They said that the political patrons, in particular, responsible for patronizing scandalous conduct of officials and agencies must be thoroughly exposed and brought to book. “Various officials guilty of dereliction of duty in ensuring supply of quality drugs to patients must be identified and punished in an exemplary manner,” they said.
Meanwhile, South Kashmir Civil Society (SKCS) took out a peaceful protest march against spurious drugs scam . The protest stride started from industrial estate Islamabad and marched through various streets of the district and finally culminated at D.C office.
Source
OP: I don't even know what to say about this, it really is "silently" killing citizens of Kashmir. This supply of fake drugs has led to the deaths of infants in Kashmir. And yet I bet the government will not look any further into it than just firing a few figureheads here and there.