Demands ban on online sale of medicines and 0 per cent GST on medicines
TMSRU fifth conference begins in Karimnagar town
KARIMNAGAR, MARCH 09, 2024: The Telangana Medical and Sales Representatives Union (TMSRU) affiliated to Federation of Medical Representatives Associations of India (FMRAI) and Central Trade Union of India (CITU) at its fifth state conference has demanded that the Union government should take measures to reduce the prices of all medicines.
Flaying the government for allowing the Pharma companies to increase the prices of medicines upto 12.12 per cent, the TMSRU said that this move would only aggravate hardships faced by the public. They also sought exemption from GST for all medicines, ban on online sale of medicines, strengthening regulation on quality of medicine and regulate the pricing of medicines in proportion to the cost of the production and not for profiteering.
The two-day biennial fifth TMSRU conference began at Padmashalai kalyana mandapam in Karimnagar town on Saturday. Senior IMA leader Dr Edavelli Vijayender Reddy, who is also invitation committee president of the conference, explained about the TMSRU agitations demanding the government to reduce the prices of all medicines. He also assured all assistance to the medical representatives.
All-India Insurance employees association former general secretary K Venugopal condemned the anti-peoples policies of the Union government. Flaying the government for not taking any measures to reduce the prices of essential commodities, he charged that the BJP government was encouraging only corporate sector.
FMRAI president K Ramesh Sunder stressed on the need for the protection of Sales Promotion Employees Act, 1976, and provide working days as per law to the medical representatives. Demanding the repealing of four labour codes, which are detrimental in the interest of workforce, he said that the codes were only in favour of company management and were against the interest of workforce.
IMA Karimnagar chapter general secretary Dr G Venkat Reddy stressed on the need to launch a coordinated fight against the unethical practices of Pharma companies and assured all assistance to the Medical representatives for resolving their problems. TMSRU general secretary I Raju Bhat said that the government should ban online sale of medicines and impose 0 per cent GST on all medicines.
CITU district secretary Edla Ramesh lauded the services of medical representatives during the outbreak of Covid-19. Insurance employees union leader Rammohan, All-India lawyers union leader Satyanarayana Reddy, DYFI leader Tirupati, AIDWA leader Nagamani, Jana Vignana vedika leader Ramaraju and others also extended support to the TMSRU conference.
FMRAI assistant general secretary K Sunil Kumar, TMSRU president Bhanu Kiran, assistant secretary A Nageshwar Rao, treasurer Durga Prasad, secretaries Ch Sridhar, A Sadananda Chary, K Ilaiah, Syed Siddiqui, conference organising secretary M Anjaiah and others were also present. A rally was also taken out in the town.
