The drug regulator is also considering setting up a joint task force for fighting the menace of spurious and adulterated drugs in the country, people in the know told ET.
In a recent meeting the drug regulator has asked states for “strict implementation” of barcodes. In a bid to weed out spurious drugs, the regulator had made it mandatory for the companies to have a barcode on its label so that information such as manufacturing licence and batch number can be accessed upon scanning.
The top 300 brands of drugs included widely used analgesics, pain relievers, anti-platelet, vitamin supplements, blood-sugar lowering medicines and contraceptive tablets. “The move was to ensure authenticity of drugs and enable tracing,” added the person.
The brands identified by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) include Dolo, Saridon Fabiflu, Ecosprin, Limcee, Sumo, Calpol, Corex syrup, Unwanted 72 and Thyronorm. They were shortlisted on the basis of their moving annual turnover value as per data from market research firm Pharmatrac.
Prior to this, the health ministry had asked the department of pharmaceuticals (DoP) to shortlist top 300 drugs so that necessary amendments can be made in the drug rules for its implementation.QR codes can help in tracking and tracing the origin of drugs and minimise the chances of spurious, substandard or counterfeit drugs reaching patients.
