S. Srinivasan | Economic and Political Weekly | Vol 47, Issue 25 | 23 June 2012
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation is expected to protect the citizen from the marketing of harmful pharmaceuticals. The fi ndings of the 59th report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare are an expose of the shockingly lax standards followed by this so-called standards organisation, the casual approach taken in certifying drugs for sale, and the unethical and illegal steps taken by some pharmaceutical companies and medical practitioners in pushing for the introduction of certain drugs in the market. Can and will the government act?