Karnataka government is considering to work out a system to enable users can log in and key in the name of the drug to get any critical information about any drug in the market.

According to senior officials in the state government in charge of computer operations, the data on the web is expected to reveal the purity of the drug and the contents, which will help consumers to know all details of the prescribed medicine.

At present the government drug test laboratory in the State drugs control department is the only facility for testing drugs. With new drug formulations entering the market at a faster pace, the drug manufacturers are impatient to wait for the drug test results and in may cases the medicines are sold before it is even tested.

The government of Karnataka is keen to offer opportunities to the private drug labs and is considering issue accreditation to take on the onus of drugs testing and help in the generation of authentic and speedier results. In order to curb corruption and prevent inordinate delays, the State drugs control laboratory is likely to be made an autonomous institution. For bringing in transparency in the functioning of testing drugs, the State government wants to remove the monopoly of the drug testing lab in the State drugs control department and appoint a panel of officers who will work independent of the drug controller.

The Rs. 300 crore-drug scam has revealed that the State government's drug purchase department could be duped going by the stocks of spurious drugs unearthed in the primary health centres in the State and all of which have been tested at the State drugs control lab.

The reports from the government testing labs revealed that in Karnataka there are around 839 drugs, which are categorised not of standard quality. Out of this 91 are spurious. There are around 738 drugs have been declared sub-standard because it failed to in description, dissolution, disintegration, uniformity of weight and sterility. In many drugs, the content of the medicine was nil. In some cases the quantity of the medicine content was halved as against the claims on the strips. Like for instance in a 500 mg strength Ampicillin capsule, there was only 370 grams of the actual medicine. The drugs purchased by the government hospitals, do not even have the expiry date mentioned on the pack. In 2000-2001, there were 34 spurious drugs and 265 sub-standard drugs.