ROURKELA: Seven months after Niramaya Drug Distribution Centre was set up in Rourkela Government Hospital (RGH), it is yet to get required medicines and logistics support from the Government.
The centre was inaugurated in May with an aim to provide 570 types of essential and life saving drugs, but the Health department has not been able to supply the required medicines.
Authorities resent that the free medicine distribution scheme was launched in a hurry without considering the technical difficulties. However, they hoped things would improve shortly.
RGH sources said earlier the State Drug Management Unit was entrusted with handling the scheme. Later, Odisha State Medical Corporation Ltd took the charge of procuring medicines from suppliers and manufactures.
As per information available, a global tender was floated to procure bulk quantity of medicines and for technical reasons the tender finalisation is getting delayed.
They claimed with the Corporation is laying thrust on quality testing of drugs and it is also acting as a delaying factor.
RGH sources said although online entry is mandatory for free distribution of drug, no data entry operator has been appointed and the centre runs only for a few hours in a day with less than 50 types of medicines.
RGH Chief Medical Officer Dr BK Dash admitted that RGH is not getting the required medicines.
Meanwhile, responding to the demand of Rourkela MLA Dilip Ray, the State Government has recently approved proposal to double the bed strength of the Sick Neo-Natal Unit-II from 12 to 24. Similarly, proposals for a new OPD block in the Eye Department and Operation Theatre-II have also been approved.
health care