The Indian Express                        03.04.2013

PCMC places first order, Hindustan Antibiotics responds fast

Ailing pharma PSU Hindustan Antibiotics Tuesday sent a consignment of
medicine worth Rs 1.34 lakh to the medical department of
Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation which had placed the order on
March 30.

“In barely two days, we executed the order worth Rs 1.34 lakh,”
said HA personnel H T Das. “We dispatched three medicines, Ampicillin
injection, Cipro TZ tablet, Cephalexin capsule, all antibiotics,” he
said.

Like Das, senior HA officials and other employees are happy and
feel this would go a long way in “resurrecting” the ailing PSU, a dream
project of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.

Ever since the death of wife of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi,
Kasturba, who could have been saved by antibiotics, when anti-biotics
were not manufactured in the country, Nehru had wanted to start a
manufacturing unit. Kasturba Gandhi had died in Pune and therefore the
HA was located in Pimpri, near Pune.

HA officials now hope that Pune Municipal Corporation run
hospitals, private hospitals in Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad, and
government hospitals like Sassoon can place their orders with them. “If
we get orders from all of them, Pandit Nehru’s dream project would
certainly not close down as feared,” officials said.

The placing of orders by PCMC, stated to be first in the history
of the civic body, follows a promise by Municipal Commissioner Shrikar
Pardeshi.

On March 4, Newsline had reported that HA had run out of cash to
pay salary to employees and purchase raw material. The report
highlighted how PCMC medical department had consistently been refusing
to purchase medicine from HA or the civic-run YCM hospital. HA officials
alleged that whenever they approached PCMC, officials demanded
kickbacks, including tickets to Singapore.

Taken aback by the report, municipal commissioner Pardeshi had said
PCMC would do its bit to help the ailing pharma PSU. He said PCMC will
place orders for seven medicines with HA without calling for tenders.

“Pardeshi directed the medical department to place the order
without delay. And the department obliged,” senior officials said. The
civic chief said PCMC would do whatever possible to help HA. “A
government resolution that medicines be compulsorily purchased from
state-run units comes in handy for us to place order with HA without
inviting tenders,” Pardeshi said.

There was excitement on HA premises when the consignment was
being dispatched. “The staff, management and administration are
delighted. After the report highlighted HA’s plight, things really moved
fast. We hope we keep getting orders and live up to PCMC expectations.
This is a morale booster for us,” said Das.

HA union leader Arun Borhade said PCMC reaching out to HA will
certainly help the PSU to move forward on the revival path. Both the
management and union leaders are awaiting a revival package, the second,
of Rs 502 crore which is said to have been approved by the Centre.