Islamabad:The National Assembly was informed today that the government has devised a project aimed at effectively addressing the issue of counterfeit medicines in the country.
According to Radio Pakistan, Minister for National Health Services, Mustafa Kamal, told the House during Question Hour that the project will be formally launched by the Prime Minister by the end of November. This initiative will allow consumers to verify the authenticity of medicines by scanning their 2D barcodes using mobile phones at pharmacies.
The system is designed to enable consumers to check whether a medicine is genuine, verify its approved price, and confirm its expiry date. Additionally, it will allow the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) to take appropriate action against those involved in the manufacture and distribution of counterfeit medicines.
Furthermore, Minister Kamal stated that the government is working towards making Pakistan self-reliant in indigenous vaccine production.
In other developments, Minister for Railways Hanif Abbasi announced that Pakistan Railways is advancing on the path of digitization. It has modernized its reservation system by introducing online and electronic ticket booking through the Railways Automated Booking and Travel Assistance (RABTA) mobile application. This system allows passengers to check schedules, verify seat availability, and purchase tickets electronically without visiting reservation offices.
Additionally, Parliamentary Secretary for Water Resources, Ms. Rana Ansar, informed the House about the government's sponsorship of the construction of eighteen dams, including the Diamer Bhasha Dam, to augment national water storage capacity. The Diamer Bhasha Dam alone will store 6.4 million acre-feet of water, significantly enhancing irrigation supplies to the existing 45 million acres of land currently irrigated by the Indus Basin Irrigation System. Fourteen more reservoirs are in the planning and design stage.
Parliamentary Secretary for National Food Security, Shaista Khan, highlighted that the government has taken various regulatory, certification, inspection, and enforcement measures to ensure the availability of quality seeds across the country. Research is being conducted to develop climate-resilient wheat and cotton seed varieties. She also mentioned that the winding up of PASSCO is part of broader agriculture sector reform and deregulation processes aimed at transitioning the wheat sector towards a market-oriented and private-sector-led system.
Responding to a Calling Attention Notice, Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Division, Osama Sarwar, mentioned that four new aircraft would be inducted into Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) by January next year. PIA has been privatized and now operates under an independent Board of Directors. Although the airline cannot be directed to operate specific routes, Sarwar assured the House that PIA would commence flights from Karachi to the United Kingdom in January next year.
The National Assembly also passed a resolution unanimously, reaffirming its commitment to the dignity, equality, and protection of every individual against all forms of workplace harassment. The resolution, moved by Shahida Rehmani, emphasized that harassment is not limited to sexual conduct and can include gender-based discrimination, intimidation, and misuse of authority. The House called upon the Federal Government and relevant institutions to ensure the effective implementation of existing laws against harassment in all its forms. The current session of the House has now been prorogued.