The All India Drug Control Officers Confederation (AIDCOC) has opposed the Government's move on allowing sale of household remedies in grocery stores. This move will increase the scope for self-medication among consumers and supply of spurious drugs in the country.

Chemists in India are well equipped to serve the country and grocery stores cannot maintain such standards. The move is backed by the manufacturers lobby, which wants to save profit margins that are usually given to C and F agents, wholesalers and retailers and sell directly to grocery stores, observed a senior official at AIDCOC.

The source said, chemist stores are spread out across the country even in remote corners of North East. When the existing system is running efficiently, there is no necessity at all to introduce this amendment. The move is going to be only beneficial to the manufacturer and will not benefit the consumer in any way.

The government is proposing a draft amendment to the Schedule K of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, which will allow the drugs categorized as 'household remedies' to be sold from unlicensed outlets throughout the country. This has been strongly opposed by the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) and Indian Medical Association (IMA) already. It is learnt that IPA-Community Pharmacy Division is preparing draft recommendations on the issue.

If OTC medicines are sold across grocery stores, it is indirectly de-recognizing pharmacists manning the drug stores, which would lead to increase in self-medication among consumers. Common man is thus required to be sensitised to dangers of over-medication, antibiotic resistance and adverse drug reactions, by experts in this field. Instead, if medicines become available at grocery stores, control of consumption will be difficult, experts point.

In India, only licensed drug stores are allowed to sell any medicine. However, as per item 12 and 13 of Schedule K of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, the sale of household remedies such as Paracetamol tablets, cough and cold medicines, antacids, antiseptic creams and lotions, baby gripe water, prickly heat powders, throat lozenges, medicated mouthwashes, band-aids and others (excluding any medicine containing ingredients which are required to be sold under doctors' prescription or to be used under medical supervision such as Schedule G, H or X drugs) also require drug licence for sale except in villages having population under 1,000.

The draft notification revising Schedule K is to bring amendment in item 12 and 13, which will permit the sale of household remedies through general and departmental stores, which do not have a drug licence.