More than 12.40 lakh chemists and pharmaceutical distributors across India are expected to participate in a nationwide strike on May 20 after the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) intensified its protest against online medicine platforms, regulatory relaxations and aggressive discounting by large corporate-backed pharmacy players.
The one-day shutdown, called by the AIOCD, could disrupt routine medicine purchases across several parts of the country, particularly in smaller towns and semi-urban regions where neighbourhood pharmacies remain the primary source of medicines. However, chemist associations indicated that emergency medicines would remain available in many locations during the strike.
According to media reports, the main reason for the dispute is the rapid expansion of e-pharmacy platforms and concerns among traditional chemists over what they describe as inadequate regulatory oversight governing online medicine sales.
In a memorandum submitted to Narendra Modi, the AIOCD alleged that repeated representations to the government on issues related to pharmaceutical trade and patient safety had not resulted in concrete action.
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The organisation claimed that online medicine sellers were using relaxations under notification G.S.R. 817(E) to sell medicines without sufficient physical verification of prescriptions. According to the association, this has enabled repeated use of prescriptions and easier access to antibiotics as well as habit-forming drugs.
The chemists' body also raised concerns over the possible misuse of AI-generated fake prescriptions to procure medicines online. It warned that unchecked availability of antibiotics and other drugs could worsen antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which continues to remain a major public health concern globally.
A key demand of the AIOCD is the withdrawal of G.S.R. 220(E), a temporary notification issued during the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020 to ensure uninterrupted access to medicines during lockdowns. The association alleged that the emergency-era provision has continued beyond the pandemic period and weakened safeguards under Drug Rule 65 governing prescription medicine sales.
Apart from regulatory concerns, pricing practices have also emerged as a major flashpoint. The AIOCD alleged that deep discounting by organised online pharmacy platforms is distorting the retail medicine market and threatening the survival of small independent chemists, especially in rural and semi-urban areas operating on thin margins.
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The organisation has demanded the immediate withdrawal of G.S.R. 220(E), scrapping of G.S.R. 817(E) linked to e-pharmacy operations, and the introduction of a “level playing field” policy to prevent what it described as predatory pricing practices in the pharmaceutical retail sector.
In a joint statement, AIOCD President JS Shinde and General Secretary Rajiv Singhal said, “This is not merely a matter of trade, but of patient safety.”
The office bearers added that the agitation could intensify further if the government does not respond before May 20.
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