The Union Minister for Home Affairs and Cooperation and Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers & Health and Family Welfare have inaugurated the National Mega Conclave on “PACS as Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Jan Aushadhi Kendra”. A press release on the launch was issued on January 8, 2024.
The event, organized under the theme “Sahakar – se – Samriddhi,” aimed to spotlight the significant initiatives undertaken by the Ministry of Cooperation and the progress achieved thus far.
The Minister of State, Ministry of Cooperation, joined the leaders at the conclave, which focused on the latest model byelaws adopted by the Ministry of Cooperation. These byelaws have broadened the scope of Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), empowering them to go beyond their traditional role in agricultural credit to also manage Jan Aushadhi Kendras.
The Union Minister for Home Affairs and Cooperation emphasized the impact of allowing PACS to open Jan Aushadhi Kendras, asserting that the benefits would extend not only to cooperative societies but also reach the grassroots of the community. He highlighted that over the last nine years, approximately Rs. 26,000 crores of savings have been realized for the underprivileged through Jan Aushadhi Kendras. These centers provide generic medicines at 50-90% of market prices, ensuring affordable healthcare for all.
The Union Minister also shed light on other initiatives of the Union Government, including Ayushman Bharat, Mission Indradhanush, Jal Jeevan Mission, Digital Health, Malaria Elimination Mission, and TB Mukt Bharat Initiative. He emphasized that these efforts have significantly transformed the healthcare landscape of the country.
The Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers & Health and Family Welfare has shared that, in the first phase, 2,000 Jan Aushadhi Kendras are planned to be opened through PACS. He highlighted the approval of over 2,300 applications from PACS for opening Kendras, with 500 already operational. The move, he stated, aims to strengthen PACS as a cooperative organization while expanding the availability of quality and affordable medicines nationwide.
Symbolic certificates of store codes were presented to five PACS representatives from Jammu & Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh. Participants expressed satisfaction with the policies implemented for PACS and shared their experiences under the newly adopted model byelaws.
The conclave brought together representatives from various PACS across the country, senior officials of the Union Government, and stakeholders involved in the Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Pariyojana, fostering a collaborative platform to further healthcare accessibility and cooperative development.
