© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
The government will open “Pashu Aushadhi” stores across the country to provide affordable generic veterinary medicines to people engaged in animal husbandry and dairying. What is this initiative and what does it aim to do?
Based on Janaushadhi Kendras
The Pashu Aushadhi initiative has been conceptualised on the lines of the existing Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadhi Kendras (PMBJK), which provide “quality generic medicines at affordable prices” to people in order to “bring down the healthcare budget of every citizen of India”.
More than 10,300 PMBJKs are currently functional across the country, according to the Department of Pharmaceuticals under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers. India will celebrate Janaushadhi Diwas on March 7.
“Generic medicines” are basically non-branded drugs, which are marketed under a non-proprietary or approved name rather than a proprietary or brand name.
While the PMBJKs provide medicines for humans, Pashu Aushadhi Kendras will provide generic medicines for animals.
To improve health of livestock
The Pashu Aushadhi initiative is part of the revised Livestock Health and Disease Control Programme (LHDCP), which was approved by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (March 5).
LHDCP has an overall outlay of Rs 3,880 crore for the years 2024-25 and 2025-26. Of this, Rs 75 crore have been provided for “good quality and affordable generic veterinary medicine and incentive for sale of medicines under” the Pashu Aushadhi component.
As per the 20th Livestock Census, India’s Livestock population stood at 535.78 million in 2019. This included a total bovine population (including cattle, buffalo, mithun and yak) of 302.79 million.
According to the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, the “productivity of livestock is impacted adversely due to diseases like Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), Brucellosis, Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF), Lumpy Skin Disease, etc.”
While measures such as vaccination drives have been taken proactively, a lot remains to be done. A significant portion of the out-of-pocket expenditure of farmers goes into buying medicines to treat their cattle and other animals for illnesses.
“Implementation of the LHDCP will facilitate reduction in these losses by preventing diseases through immunization,” the Ministry said in a statement.
Will be run by co-op societies
The Pashu Aushadhi stores will be run by cooperative societies and Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samriddhi Kendras (PMKSK). The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying will soon release guidelines for the functioning of these stores, a source said.
Will also sell traditional medicines
The Pashu Aushadhi Kendras will also sell ethnoveterinary medicines, based on traditional beliefs and indigenous knowledge and practices, to treat animal diseases.
The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) has compiled a list of ethnoveterinary formulations for important ailments in bovines. These include formulations for the treatment of mastitis, FMD mouth lesions, FMD foot lesions/ wounds, fever, diarrhoea, bloating and indigestion, and worm.
The formulation to treat animal fever includes items such as coriander, garlic, bay leaves, pepper, cumin, turmeric powder, chirata, betel, tulsi, neem, sweet basil, jaggery, and shallots/ onions.
