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 In the wake of the Delhi Drugs Control Administration (DCA) making digital tracking compulsory for specified controlled substances, the Retail Distribution Chemists Alliance (RDCA), an organisation of pharma retailers and wholesalers in Delhi, has issued an advisory to their members across the National Capital Territory, urging them to immediately prepare their technical infrastructure for compliance.
The trade advisory follows a formal circular (F.No. DCD-17/1/2026-COMP) issued on August 24, 2026, by Rajeev Bhargava, Head of Office and Controlling Authority at the Delhi Drugs Control Department. The notification directs all pharmaceutical establishments operating in Delhi to mandatorily record every purchase and sale transaction of designated drugs on the newly launched portal, drugsmonitoring.delhi.gov.in.
Developed by the state regulatory authority in collaboration with the National Informatics Centre (NIC-Delhi), the Drugs Monitoring System (DMS) aims to curb the diversion and illegal distribution of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances as well as habit-forming formulations covered under Schedule H1. The regulatory department confirmed that the portal is live and operational with immediate effect.
Reiterating the core directives of the official order, the RDCA instructed all members to verify that their mobile numbers linked with the Online Drug Licensing System (ONDLS) portal are functional, as access to the new monitoring system relies strictly on ONDLS registered credentials for login.
Crucially, the trade association highlighted a major point of operational clarity for chemists, warning members not to assume that every medicine under Schedule H or H1 requires daily digital logging. Instead, the RDCA advised traders to access the portal directly and check the specific drug lists and mapped categories populated inside the system to determine exact reporting obligations.
While welcoming the regulatory initiative to maintain supply-chain transparency, pharmacy trade representatives observed that small-scale retailers may face initial hurdles adapting to real-time daily data entry. The association urged members encountering technical glitches, profile mismatches, or portal access errors to contact the department’s headquarters at Karkardooma in Delhi, for technical support.
The enforcement push marks a significant shift toward digital accountability in the capital's pharmaceutical market. As state regulators step up monitoring of habit-forming and controlled formulations, trade bodies are emphasizing proactive compliance to prevent disruption to retail operations and avoid regulatory action during inspections.
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