Mixed response in Karnataka to nation-wide call for medical stores shutdown

Key points

• A nation-wide call given by the All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists (AIOCD) to shut medical stores on Wednesday (May 20) in protest against online sale of medicines received a mixed response in Karnataka.
• While medical stores affiliated to the Karnataka Chemists and Druggists Association (KCDA) and Bengaluru Pharma Retailers and Distributors Forum (BPRDF) remained closed, the Karnataka Pharma Retailers and Distributors Organisation extended moral support to the protest and asked chemists to continue business wearing black badges instead of downing shutters.
• Likewise, stores affiliated to the Bangalore District Chemists and Druggists Association (BDCDA) also functioned with chemists wearing black badges.
• The AIOCD represents more than 12.4 lakh medicine traders across the country.
• Karnataka alone has around 45,000 retail medicine shops.