Jamshedpur, Jan. 5: The next time your friendly neighbourhood doctor prescribes medicines for common cold, aches and stomach upsets, make sure that the drugs are not on the World Health Organisation (WHO) blacklist.

Doctors in the steel city are still prescribing banned medicines despite the directives of WHO and the Union ministry of health and family welfare. The market is virtually flooded with blacklisted drugs.

Manufacturing and sale of generic drugs like medilike sesapride, surazolidone, phenylpro panolamine or PPA have been banned because these medicines have side effects.

Nimuslide, a common pain-killer is “hepato-toxic” and affects the liver. A single dose of Nimuslide — Nise, Nimulade, Nipa, Nilid —damages the liver and sustained intake can cause jaundice or cirrhosis.

Similarly, sesapride — Ciza — used for stomach disorders cause cardiac arrests. Phenylopro panolamine or PPA — cough syrups — is also harsh on the heart.

Other medicines banned globally are anti-allergic stimazole drugs — Estimiz capsule, anti-asthamatic turfenadine — Terbat Syrup and surazolidone, an anti-diarrhoea medicine, all of which cause respiratory disorder, tremor and cardiac arrest respectively.

But various drugs companies across the country are still manufacturing and selling them in violation of the directives issued by the authorities concerned. The banned drugs flood the local medical stores and the drug-store owners continue to sell them unhindered.

“It is surprising to see medicines like Enteroquinals (sesapride) being sold by drugs store in the steel city even without prescriptions. Many people do not know that Enteroquinal has been banned. Even the pharmacists are also not aware of it,” said former principal of MGM Medical College D.N. Mukherjee.

Expressing his concern over the rampant sale of banned drugs, he suggested that the Medical Council of India should develop some mechanism to make the doctors aware of the drugs banned by the World Health Organisation.

Senior medical officers in Tata Main Hospital said, “MCI does not have proper channels to inform the doctors about the developments taking place in the field of medical science as a result of which most of the doctors are being reduced to laymen.”

President of the Jamshedpur chapter of Indian Medical Association R.L. Agrawal admitted that banned medicines are being sold in the city medical stores. “It is a shocking to note that banned medicines like sesapride, PPA and nimusulide are being sold in the open market. The state health authorities must look into the matter,” he said.

Agrawal said, “The companies manufacturing the banned drugs must be blacklisted. I understand that the people of the steel city are being administered medicines declared banned.”

He also demanded that the state government depute more drugs inspectors who can raid the shops more frequently to check the sale.

Jharkhand health commissioner P.P. Sharma expressed his ignorance on whether any banned drug was being sold in any part of the state. “I am not aware about the sale of any blacklisted drug.”

He said he was in the city recently and no civil surgeon or any member of the Medical Council of India had complained to him.

But he said, “This is a serious thing. I will not allow a single banned drug to be sold in the market. If necessary, I will inquire into it.”