Kathmandu,
Jan. 30: Vice-President Nanda Bahadur Pun on Tuesday said that it was
unfortunate that people in Nepal were dying in the absence of basic medicines
and health facilities even though the Constitution has guaranteed basic health
services to them.
“Even in the age of
modern technology and advanced health services, people in Nepal are deprived of
basic health services and medicines. Therefore, more investment should be
channelled to create quality health infrastructure and services,” said the VP
at a programme organised on the occasion of the 27th Anniversary of
Deural Janta Pharmaceuticals Pvt. Limited (DJPL) here.
He urged both the
government and private sector to invest in health and medicine sectors and
promote health research and development.
VP Pun said that due to
its rich herbal and medicinal plants, Nepal could be a medicine exporting
country in the near future, therefore traditional medicines should be
preserved.
“But the size of exports
is very small, which stands at Rs. 708.5 million as per last year’s data. The
government has put its efforts to make the country self-reliant in medicines,
but without the private sector’s support it is difficult to achieve the
target,” he said.
The Nepali medicine
market size is Rs. 40 billion, and of that only 44 per cent is manufactured domestically.
Executive Director of
the DJPL Hari Bhakta Sharma said that if the government were to create a
conducive environment and facilitate the investors, Nepal could substitute Rs.
27 billion worth of drug imports.
According to him, the
DJPL has set an example of good business and quality products with the
application of international standards.
“We are dedicated to
economic and industrial development by creating respect to work, increasing
productivity, developing a good work culture and enhancing the capacity of the employees,”
said Sharma.
He said that the
government should promote industries and businesses rather than the
non-government organisations.
On the occasion of the
anniversary, the company organised a race of its staff from Kamalpokhari to the
factory at Dhapasi, in which Suraj Shrestha and Bivek Chandra Rai in the male
category and Deepa Shrestha and Rupa Shrestha in female category stood first
and second respectively.
DJPL is a World Health
Organisation’s Good Manufacturing Practice (WHO-GMP) certified company with an
ISO 14001 and ISO 9001 standards.
According to the
company, about Rs. 1.31 billion has been invested in the production plants and
business of the pharmaceutical company so far.
DJPL produces 320 types
of medicines, syrup, tablets, capsules, dry powder/ORS and ointment required
for the treatment of various diseases. It employs 450 people directly.
Published in The Rising Nepal on 31 January 2018.
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