As part of efforts to provide quality medicines at an affordable rate for the common man, especially the poor, the government has set a target to increase the number of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras (PMBJKs) to 10,000 by March 2024.
The number of stores has increased to 8,735 by May 31. An official release said 739 districts of the country have been covered under Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP).
It said Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI) is committed to ensure uninterrupted availability of essential medicines at PMBJKs.
In its journey of last eight years, starting from the annual turnover of Rs 8 crore in year 2014-15, PMBI has clocked its highest monthly sales turnover of Rs 100 crore in May 2022 which in turn has helped citizens save around Rs 600 crore, the release said.
"In May, 2021, total sales were Rs 83.77 crore and that was COVID-19 second wave period. People have been able to reduce their out-of-pocket expenditure on medicines with the government intervention of this noble scheme. At present, these kendras make available more than 1600 medicines and 250 surgical devices including nutraceuticals, Ayush products and Suvidha Sanitary pads which are sold at one rupee per pad," the release said.
Under PMBJP, new applications have also been invited to cover 3,579 blocks of 406 districts to provide generic medicines through Jan Aushadhi Kendras.
The release said residents of small towns and blocks headquarters can now avail the opportunity to open Jan Aushadhi Kendras. The scheme provides for incentive of Rs 5 lakh and special incentives of up to Rs 2 lakh for various categories.
The release said that PMBI has strengthened the supply chain system by setting up of four warehouses at Gurugram, Chennai, Guwahati and Surat. In addition, there is a strong distributor network of 39 distributors across India to ensure timely supplies in every part of India.
( With inputs from ANI )
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