Punjab to finally restrict tramadol sale

CHANDIGARH: Concerned over the misuse of tramadol tablets by drug addicts, the Punjab government is planning to put the painkiller in the category of restricted medicines to regulate its sale at only select chemist shops and hospitals.

A prescription drug, tramadol is an opioid painkiller mainly prescribed by the doctors for post-surgery pain or other chronic pain. In case of misuse or long use, tramadol has an addictive effect.

The state anti-drug special task force, state police and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) have seized a large number of tramadol tablets in the past few years. There are around 24,500 chemists and stockists of medicines across Punjab.

The department of revenue under the Union finance ministry had on April 26 last year notified tramadol as a psychotropic substance specified under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

The Union government had brought the tramadol under the NDPS Act “on the basis of information and evidence” regarding the nature, effect, and the scope for abuse of this medicine. The Centre had taken this step on the recommendations of the NCB which said it was not only being misused by drug addicts, but also being trafficked to the US and European countries from India.

Punjab state drug controller Pardeep Kumar Mattu said the state government is competent to regulate and control sale of medicines and restriction on sale of tramadol tablets is under active consideration. “This is a step towards demand restriction and if such medicines are not freely available over the chemist counters, there will be less chances of their misuse,” said Mattu.

The Punjab government had already restricted six chemical salts or medicines earlier — buprenorphine (used for treatment of drug addiction), dextropropoxyphene (used for treatment of mild pain and local anesthesia), diphenoxylate (opioid drug used for treatment of diarrhea), pentazocine (synthetic opioid used for treatment of pain), nitrazepam (hypnotic drug used for treatment of anxiety) and codeine (opiate for treatment of pain and used in cough syrups).

All these six chemical salts or medicines were being misused by the drug addicts in Punjab. Now these medicines are only available at select places either at hospitals or chemists and stockists near hospitals or where there is genuine requirement. These select chemists or stockists are required to maintain daily stock registers to record sale and purchase of these prescription medicines.