Press Information Bureau
Government of India
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Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Salient features of reward scheme for whistleblowers regarding of spurious or fake drugs, cosmetics and medical devices
New Delhi: November 3, 2009
Since spurious or fake drugs is a sensitive issue affecting the health of the citizens as well as the prestige of the country's pharmaceutical trade interests, there is a sense of urgency in taking on the menace on priority basis. There is no dearth of good intentioned people who may wish to work for the country's interests as the whistle blowers in eradicating the menace. People's participation is imperative in this regard and would be a highly effective step in augmenting the efforts of taking on the elements engaged in such illicit trade of spurious drugs. With this aim in view, a scheme has been devised by the Central Government for giving monetary rewards to the whistleblowers who can take risk of providing the information about the perpetrators of such crime. Such scheme is already operational in other enforcement departments of Government which pays good dividend also in terms of voluminous catches / seizures.
The Reward scheme provides for giving handsome rewards to the informers who provide specific information to the designated authorities leading to the seizures of spurious, adulterated, misbranded and not of standard quality drugs, cosmetics and medical devices. This reward scheme will be applicable to both the informers as well as the officers of the CDSCO. In the fight against the menace of spurious or fake drugs, cost of such social participation will be minimal given the proportion of damage inflicted by the perpetrators of the crime on the health of the society and the economic progress of the country.
The salient features of the reward scheme are as follows:-
The reward scheme shall be applicable for whistleblowers in the area of drugs, cosmetics and medical devices.
Reward is to be given to the whistleblowers i.e. the informers / officials only when there is a confirmation of the seizure of spurious, adulterated and misbranded drugs, cosmetics and medical devices by the designated officers of the CDSCO.
The reward of maximum of upto 20% of the total cost of consignments seized will be payable to the informer / officials which should not in any case exceed Rs 25 Lakh in each case.
In respect of an officer of the Government / CDSCO, the reward should not in any case exceed Rs 5 Lakh for one case and a maximum of Rs 30 Lakh in his / her entire service.
With a view to ensure that the informers are not made to wait till the final disposal of the matter, 25% of the amount will be given at the time of filing of the charge sheet in the court of Law.
Further, with a view to ensure that the informers do not turn hostile during the trial of the case and continue to assist the court in deciding the matter in favour of the Government, 25% of the amount will be given to them at the time of disposal of the case in favour of the Government in the first court of law.
The remaining 50% amount will be paid only when the case has been finally disposed of in favour of the Government and no appeal with respect to the matter is pending in any other Court of Law in the country.
The eligibility of the informer and the quantum of cash rewards would be decided by a Committee, which will consist of officials from different departments / offices. The Committee will consist of the following persons:
| (a) | Director General Health Services | Chairman (ex-officio) |
| (b) | Director / Deputy Secretary (Drugs), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare | Member (ex-officio) |
| (c) | Chief Controller of Accounts or Director, Internal Finance Division, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare | Member (ex-officio) |
| (d) | A Representative of the respective zonal / sub-zonal office of CDSCO nominated by DCG(I) | Member |
| (e) | Drugs Controller of the concerned State / Union Territory | Member |
| (f) | A Representative of social groups / NGOs nominated by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare | Member |
| (g) | A legal representative nominated by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare in consultation with the Ministry of Law & Justice | Member |
| (h) | A representative of the Customs Department in case of international movement of spurious drugs only | Member |
| (i) | DCG(I) or his nomine | Member-Secretary |
The eligibility of Government servants for the rewards shall be decided by the Committee depending upon the final outcome of the case only.
The Government will engage senior advocates who have sufficient experience of the cases relating to Drugs as its counsel in the cases.
To ensure speedy trials of the cases, these cases will be filed before the Designated / Special Courts set up for the purposes of drugs related issues as per the provisions of the Drugs and Cosmetics (Amendment) Act, 2008.
Special instructions are to be given to the Drug testing laboratories to send their reports at the earliest, within the minimum time possible, so that the matter is disposed of expeditiously.
Drug Controller General (India) along with other officials will be the nodal authority who will inter alia oversee the functioning of the Reward Scheme as proposed herein above.
The zonal and sub-zonal officers of the CDSCO will act as the nodal officer to whom the whistle blower / informer can provide the information about the manufacture / movement of spurious / adulterated drugs.
The identity of the whistle blower / informer will be kept secret and will be known only to the concerned zonal and sub-zonal officers of the CDSCO, the DCG(I) and the Director General Health Services. It will be the responsibility of the concerned officials to keep the details of the whistle blower / informer secret.
The identity of the whistle blower / informer will not be disclosed to the committee.
On receipt of the information from the whistle blower / informer, the concerned officers will organize immediate and systematic investigation in co-ordination with the State Drugs Control Administration to unearth the spurious drugs racket.
As the Licenses are granted by the State Drugs Control Authorities, they will take suitable action like prosecution etc depending upon the evidences available in the case.
The details of the investigations will then be forwarded by the concerned zonal / sub-zonal officer to the DCG(I) for the consideration of the committee to decide about the merit of the case for reward and the quantum of reward to be given to the whistle blower / informer.
ds/gk/dk/kol/12:14 hrs.
Press Information Bureau
Government of India
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Ministry of Tribal Affairs
Prime Minister to open State Chief Ministers' Conference tomorrow to discuss implementation of Forest Rights Act
New Delhi: November 3, 2009
The Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh will address the Conference of the Chief Ministers, State Ministers (Tribal Development & Social Welfare Department) and State Ministers (Forests) which is being organised here tomorrow by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to review the implementation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006 and major Tribal Development programmes.
Several States having sizeable tribal population will make their presentations in the Conference on the status of the implementation of the Forest Rights Act during the current year. They will also dwell upon the strategies being adopted by them for distributing titles by December, 2009, the target set before all by the President of India in her speech to joint Houses of Parliament in June, 2009.
The States have also been asked to make presentations on planned interventions using Central and States Funds under Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP), convergence with the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and other schemes and programmes being run by the Union line Ministries like Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Environment & Forest and Water Resources, etc.
vba/rs/dk/kol/12:14 hrs.
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