The recent revelation by the Health Minister P K Sreemathy in the Kerala Assembly that there was no mechanism available now to monitor the quality of medicines, worth Rs 1,800 crore a year, being sold through 15,000 outlets in the State brought sorry condition of the medical services in the limelight.

V. D. Satheesan moved an adjournment motion in the House that of the 102 samples tested in the Government-owned testing laboratory, 24 were detected as substandard and should not be used. However, these drugs were supplied by the Kerala State Medical Corporation one month ago. Satheesan said that the Corporation, instead of blacklisting the company, gave orders for next two quarters, which is a gross violation of the rule.

He added that in the case of medicine supplied through State-run hospitals, the government had placed repeat orders from companies that had supplied substandard medicines in the first quarter of the year.

He said that this is a serious situation as the government is not bothered about the well being of the common man. There is no attempt on the part of the government to study the side effects of substandard medicine that had already been distributed to patients.