Security beefed up in Kurukshetra ahead of Jats' meet

Kurukshetra, Mar 21: Tight security arrangement has been put in place ahead of a meeting of Jat leaders today to deliberate on the future course of action in view of their ongoing stir in Haryana demanding quota for the community in government jobs.

Heavy police presence was seen in the city today, particularly around Jat Dharamshala here, where the meeting was underway.

Among those taking part in the meeting were Santosh Dahiya, President of the women's wing of All India Jat Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti and Dharam Singh Chhot, Vice President of the Samiti.

Barricades were placed along the roads leading to the city last night to block the entry of agitators in the city from the adjoining areas of Ambala, Yamunanagar, Karnal and Kaithal districts.

Police are also keeping vigil at Kurukshetra railway junction and Pipli crossing on GT Road, in an attempt to thwart any effort by agitators to block the rail and road traffic on the national highway number one route, said officials.

The Jats have blocked 12 rail lines in Haryana for over two weeks, affecting train services on several routes, including Jind-Hisar, Hisar-Jakhhal, Jaipur-Hisar, Hisar-Bathinda and Delhi-Rohtak.

The protesters are demanding inclusion of the Jat community in the list of Other Backward Classes (OBC) to enable them to avail the benefit of reservation in government jobs, both in state and the Union governments.

The Jats in UP, meanwhile, withdrew their fortnight-long blockade from the railway tracks on Mar 19 following an Allahabad High Court order but a crucial meeting between the protesters and the government failed to find an amicable solution to the demand.

PTI

View the original article here

Commerce ministry to go ahead with barcoding of medicines

Hyderabad, March 15: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry will go ahead with the proposed 2D barcoding and a unique ''randomly generated numeric code'' on medicine packaging meant for exports, a senior official said.

According to PV Appaji, executive director of Pharmexcil, (Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council) under the ministry has set March 31 as the date for receiving objections and suggestions from the pharma industry which is opposing the move.

"The government will go ahead with implementation of the bar coding. However, the ministry has asked the industry to come out with their problems before March 31. Bar coding is fixed and the government will implement it as per the schedule," Appaji told PTI.

The commerce ministry had recently mandated all medicines manufactured and exported out of the country to have a barcode from July 1.

Rajeev Kher, additional secretary, Department of Commerce held a meeting on March 10 with the representatives of pharmaceutical companies Torrent, Lupin and Fortis India, along with the officials of the Pharmexcil, sources said.

The Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has made it mandatory for drug makers to print a barcode on every product exported out of the country in the wake of overseas allegations that some local firms ship out counterfeit medicines.

Export of pharmaceuticals from India stood at Rs.40,000 crore in the last fiscal and is expected to witness a growth of 20 per cent this year.

The industry is opposing the move saying that it would incur an additional cost for bar-coding procedure.

Any value edition to the product would affect pricing, said an official of the city-based Natco Pharma.

"As it is we have been facing serious competition from China on all fronts. Barcoding needs additional investment on manpower as well as machinery and thus put pressure on pricing", M. Adinarayana, Company Secretary and General Manager of Natco Pharma said.

The pharma industry estimates that the procedure of barcoding would cost them around Rs.1 crore to Rs. 2 crore, however, Appaji said as per government estimates it would cost them 30 paisa per strip.

"Putting barcode on primary packing is difficult and expensive but secondary and outer layer of the export package will be acceptable for the industry," Appaji said.

The Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) recently indicated that it would make it mandatory for the companies that medicines for domestic supplies should also bear barcodes. However, the government is yet to come out with an order.

PTI

View the original article here