Even as the drugs controller of Kerala is reiterating that stringent action would be taken against trade bodies and pharmaceutical manufacturing companies which violate the Acts and Rules with regard to supply and distribution of medicines, several of the wholesalers have to approach legal institutions like high court for running their business without interruption.

This situation is happening in the state for the last a few years despite orders from various courts and Competition Commission of India (CCI) directing the trade body, All Kerala Chemists & Druggists Association (AKCDA) and manufacturing companies not to indulge in anti-competitive activities.

The last of the cases is of Sunanda Associates, a wholesale dealer from Kozhikodu, which had to secure two court orders last week from the high court directing Alkem Laboratories at Ernakulam and Wallace Pharmaceuticals at Kozhikodu for continuation of supply of medicines to the dealers and stop discontinuation in future if any organisation/trade body tries to meddle in the business affairs.

In October this year, the Thrissur based wholesale dealer, Kalyan Drugs, could continue their business with Lupin Laboratories, Mumbai after getting a similar order from the high court. The allegation against Lupin was that it discontinued supply on the advice of the state trade body. The court had then directed the enforcement authorities to take legal steps to ensure compliance of clause 18 of the DPCO for the sake of establishing a smooth drugs distribution system in the state.

In the same month itself, in the wake of a complaint by Alliance of Pharmaceutical Traders, Kerala (APT),  the drugs control department at Thiruvananthapuram  directed the intelligence wing of the department to inquire the reason for the suspension of supply of medicines to a dealer in Kozhikodu by the Mumbai-based manufacturing firm Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

According to traders, the major bottleneck for their business is the intervention of the local units of the trade body which compels the manufacturing companies to discontinue medicine supplies to the wholesalers until they comply the trade body’s conditions which are unfair and illegal. CP Kunhi Moidoo, president of APT told Pharmabiz that Sunanda Associates at Kozhikodu had to file petition against Alkem and Wallace because of the intervention of AKCDA’s Kozhikodu district committee. Duet to the conditions insisted by AKCDA, the dispute between the traders and the trade organisation is taking a new turn now.

Whereas, the business community and public at large are complaining that this kind of situation shows the fact that the enforcement authorities in Kerala are not that much concerned about a proper drug distribution system in the state. In all the petitions filed against the manufacturing companies by various traders, the first respondent was always the drugs controller or district officials. This shows a blatant negation of duties by the responsible officials in enforcing the law.

When contacted, B Hariprasad, the state drugs controller, reiterated that stringent action would be initiated against all kinds of violations by any trade body or manufacturing company who engages in unfair trade practices. To another question, he said inquiries had conducted against Lupin Labs and Glenmark and inspection orders have been issued on the complaints against Alkem Labs and Wallace Pharmaceuticals.