Action if salines sold at hiked prices: Consumer rights body

The Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection will launch drives in pharmacies across the country starting Thursday to ensure that salines are sold at fixed retail prices.

The move comes after patients reported saline scarcity and high prices in drugstores amid an intensifying dengue outbreak.

"The drives will be conducted from 14 September in pharmacies across the country. Stores where irregularities in prices are found will be sealed and licences will be revoked. Moreover, action will be taken against those who are raising prices by creating an artificial shortage in the market," Director General of the directorate AHM Safiquzzaman said in a meeting with saline manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers and other stakeholders at the organisation's office in Karwan Bazar of the capital on Wednesday.

Stating that it is important to identify where the problem lies with the price of saline, Safiquzzaman said, "The price written on a saline packet's label is the maximum retail price and it cannot be sold beyond that price.

"The source of saline is our pharmaceutical companies. Saline is sold to pharmacies through a distribution chain which is fully regulated. It is not like other products and cannot be sold beyond the retail price. The price cannot be hiked if saline supply is low and demand is high. It is a lifesaving drug, so why play with it?"

Referring to the Bangladesh Chemist and Druggist Samity, Safiquzzaman said, "Drug companies did not raise the price of saline; It is you who created an artificial crisis."

He also noted that the maximum price of saline is Tk87, but after surveying stores it was found that saline is being sold at Tk150-350.

"There is no saline crisis. An artificial crisis is being created," he reiterated, noting that the crisis occurred following the surge in dengue cases in the country.

To address the current situation, the government has taken the initiative to import 7 lakh bags of saline and instructed manufacturers to operate their factories in three shifts, said Ashraf Hossain, director of the Directorate General of Drug Administration.

He said there should be no saline crisis because manufacturers are producing an adequate amount. If there is a crisis, it means someone is manipulating the market.

However, when asked, officials of the DGDA and DGHS could not provide accurate information about the production, demand and supply of saline bags every month at the public and private levels.

Libra Infusions, one of the six companies that produce saline, is producing 15,000-20,000 bags daily, against its capacity of 100,000 bags.

In this regard, Director General of the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection AHM Safiquzzaman said he would recommend that the commerce ministry provide the support the company needs to boost production. "Because if we import saline from abroad, we have to spend dollars. Rather, production should be increased by supporting the country's institutions," he added.

Popular Pharmaceuticals General Manager Abdul Hye Siddiue said six companies are producing 53 lakh bags of saline monthly, which is enough to deal with the current demand.

Anwar Hossain Mridha, director (central) of the Chemist and Druggist Samity, said fingers are being pointed towards pharmacies as well as the Samity, around 80% of pharmacies are not getting saline from the companies as per their demand.

Representatives of the six saline-producing companies who were present at the meeting said they're manufacturing as per the government directives; the problem is at the distributor level.

They urged the government to monitor the distribution situation to find a solution