GUWAHATI: With distributors and wholesalers here remaining closed in view of the two-week lockdown since Sunday evening, pharmacies in the city apprehend scarcity of some “high-demand” medicine in the coming days.
What is actually compounding the problem is that a majority of the medicine distributors are located in the Panbazar area, which was declared a containment zone about a couple of weeks before the lockdown, compelling closure of all medicine stockists in the area.
“As on date, we do have stock of regular medicine for blood pressure and diabetes patients. However, stocks might run out if there is no supply after three more days. As it is, we have not been able to meet the demand for quantity sought by customers over the past three days,” a pharmacist in the Silpukhuri area said on Thursday.
Assam minister of state for health and family welfare Pijush Hazarika, meanwhile has sought two more days before a review is made to explore exemptions during the lockdown period.
Sources said unlike the previous notification issued by the state health department on the lockdown exemptions, this time there was no mention whether medicine distributors would remain open during the two-week period. Only pharmacies have been allowed to operate.
“Roughly 50 per cent of the distributors are located in Panbazar which had been declared a containment area on June 11 after COVID-19 positive cases were detected there. Hence, distributors have not been able to supply any stock to us since then,” a pharmacist told the media.
He further said that a pharmacy would have about 30,000 varieties of medicine and all of them could not be stocked in bulk for a long period.
Even as the situation has not become precarious with the government claiming available stocks in hospitals, there is uncertainty among sections who hinge on pharmacies for their daily dose of medicine.
