Rajkot (Gujarat) [India], May 20 (ANI): Several medical shops and pharmacies remained closed in Gujarat's Rajkot on Wednesday as the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) observed a nationwide 24-hour strike against alleged unregulated e-pharmacy operations, deep discounts and unverified online sale of prescription medicines.

The strike, which began on May 20 and will continue till May 21, has been called by the AIOCD demanding a complete halt to online sale of medicines and withdrawal of certain government notifications related to e-pharmacy operations.

Visuals from Rajkot showed shutters down at several medical stores as chemists joined the nationwide protest.

Speaking to ANI earlier, AIOCD National President JS Shinde termed the current online sale of medicines in the country as 'entirely unlawful and illegal.'

'The online sale of medicines has recently commenced. However, the online sales currently taking place are entirely unlawful and illegal. This is because the government had previously issued a notification regarding this matter, specifically GSR 817,' he said.

Shinde said the organisation had opposed the online sale of medicines during policy discussions with the government, arguing that such systems could eventually 'fall into the hands of the mafia' if not properly regulated.

'We submitted that the online sale of medicines, when viewed in a global context, is not a beneficial practice; rather, it tends to fall into the hands of the mafia. We argued that establishing such a system would necessitate the development of a robust IT infrastructure,' he stated.

The AIOCD has placed three major demands before the government. These include cancellation of Notification GSR 817 and formulation of a fresh framework for medicine sales, withdrawal of Notification GSR 220 introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, and action against deep discounts being offered by online medicine platforms.

Shinde said offline chemists should also be allowed higher margins under the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO) if online platforms continue to offer large discounts to customers.

'Either put an end to these deep discounts offered by online platforms, or amend the DPCO to provide us with higher margins so that we, too, can offer greater discounts to consumers,' he added.

Despite the strike, the organisation said emergency medicines would remain available throughout the protest period.

'We will provide emergency medicines whenever the need arises; we have made complete arrangements for this purpose,' Shinde said.

The protest comes amid growing debate over the regulation of online pharmacies and medicine delivery platforms in the country. (ANI)