The All India Chemists and Distributors Federation (AICDF) is up in arms against the spurious drugs bill as they fear that some of the provisions incorporated will pose a threat to the interests of legitimate distributors and retailers.

The proposed law has provisions to prosecute and punish the distributor and retailer if a drug under their possession is found spurious. The punishment will be the same as prescribed to the manufacturer of the drug which is 10 years imprisonment and Rs 10 lakh fine. Currently, exemptions are granted for legitimate traders under section 18 (g) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940, AICDF leaders pointed out.

"Earlier, the onus of the spurious drugs was only on the manufacturer and the traders were exempted from legal action. The biggest drawback of the proposed law is that it has inculcated provisions to punish the entire distribution chain from retailer to C&F distributor if the drug is found spurious," said Prem Ranka, general secretary of AICDF.

The bill has mixed up the whole issue of spurious and substandard drugs without defining what is spurious. With lack of provisions to protect the legitimate dealers from the legal actions, the law will create panic among the pharmaceutical traders in the country, he added.

The objections of traders come at a time when the pharmaceutical manufacturers are working hard to change some of the provisions in the bill which may lead to harassment of legitimate drug producers.

The Federation has demanded the government to restore the provisions in the old law to exempt the legitimate traders from legal action. The traders' body will soon submit its representation to the state drug controllers and the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) demanding that the licensed dealer with adequate proof of purchase of the drug in question should be exempted from legal proceedings.

"If the licensed retailer or dealer has a valid proof of purchase, the drug control officials should exempt them from the case. We would also meet the ministry officials to express our views," said Ranka. The association has its presence in almost 18 states across the country and has more than one lakh members, he claimed.