CEO Drug Regulatory Authority Salman Afghani told during a briefing to standing committee of National Assembly that medicines of $3 billion are produced in Pakistan annually out of which 2% are substandard while 0.1% are fake. For the first time, DRA has decided to introduce coding system in Pakistan under barcode rules to stop the production of fake and substandard medicines.

Salman Afghani told that DRA has started stepwise work on this matter. Under this coding, the buyer can know about the originality or fake of a medicine through mobile phones. He told that prices of less use medicines in the country will be equivalent to prices in India and Bangladesh for the first time in order to stop black marketing of these medicines. Punishments for selling medicines on higher prices than prescribed will be increased. The owner of pharmaceutical company will be given punishment of 3 years in jail along with 1 crore to 10 crore fine while distributor will be punished with 2 years of imprisonment and fine of Rs. 1 lac to 10 lac. The punishment of retailer will be Rs. 1 lac fine and 1 year in jail.

Chairman Khalid Magsi chaired the meeting of committee. The CEO also told that work is in progress on new regulations of authority through which Drug Testing Lab will be upgrade, quality of medicines will be improved and prices of medicines will be controlled.