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 The Drugs Control Administration (DCA) in Telangana has taken a significant step toward safeguarding public health by empowering citizens to verify the legitimacy of medical shops and pharmacies.
The department is urging the public to utilize its Online Drug Licensing System (ODLS) website, which features a ‘Third-Party Verification’ tool, making it quick and easy to check if a vendor holds a valid drug license.
This proactive measure aims to curb the illegal sale of medicines and protect consumers from counterfeit or sub-standard drugs.
A recent public advisory of the DCA emphasizes that purchasing medicines only from licensed medical shops is crucial. Licensed establishments are required to display their drug licenses, issued by the DCA, in a prominent and easily visible location. However, for added assurance, the public can now directly check the official database. This transparency mechanism ensures that citizens are not unwittingly buying products from unregulated sources, which significantly increases the risk to public health.
Office of the director general of the DCA informed that the ‘Third-Party Verification’ feature is accessible on the ODLS website at https://odls.telangana.gov.in/ThirdPartypublicview.aspx. To verify a shop’s license, a member of the public simply needs to enter the name of the pharmacy or medical shop into the search box provided. The system then displays the details of the drug licenses issued by the drug control department, allowing the public to instantly check if the medical shop or pharmacy is legally authorized to sell medicines.
This advisory and verification push comes close on the heels of a successful raid conducted by DCA officials, which underscored the persistent problem of unlicensed drug sales. The Director General of the DCA, Shah Nawas Quasim, has warned that selling medicines without a license is a serious offense, and drugs purchased from such unauthorized premises are often counterfeit products. The online verification tool is designed to be the public's first line of defence against this risk.
In a recent operation on November 29th, DCA officials, acting on credible information, raided an illegally operated medical shop near Mondi Gate at Mamillagudem in Khammam district. The premises were being run illegally by P V Narendra Kumar without a valid drug license. The raiding team, which included drug inspectors C. Anil Kumar and G Aswani, under the supervision of assistant director M Aravind Kumar, detected the unauthorized stocking of a massive quantity of medicines for sale.
The raid resulted in the seizure of a total of 101 varieties of medicines, including essential antihypertensive drugs, antidiabetic drugs, antibiotics, and analgesics. The seized stock, which was valued at Rs. 30,000, was immediately lifted for analysis. The DCA has stated that further investigation will be carried out and appropriate legal action will be taken against all offenders, reinforcing the department's resolve to crack down on the illegal drug trade and protect citizens through both enforcement and public awareness, utilizing the online licensing system.
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