Are chemists selling feticide over the counter?

AHMEDABAD: Tightening the noose around errant clinics, where illegal sex determination tests are conducted, may not be enough to win the war against female feticide. It has come to light that some chemists sell pregnancy termination drugs, like Mifepristone and Misoprostol, without prescription. Experts believe this could be a big danger for the girl child in a state which has just 886 girls for every 1,000 boys in the age group of 0 to six years.
The Gujarat Food and Drug Control Administration recently conducted raids at chemist shops across the state and found that pregnancy termination drugs, which can't be sold without a prescription, were being handed out over the counter with a premium. Officials believe a tough regulation is needed to stop this practice.
"We suspect that the drugs being sold illegally are to kill the fetus in an advanced stage of pregnancy. This is dangerous. A clear policy is must," says Gujarat food and drug commissioner HG Koshia.
The numbers are startling. Out of 50 shops raided in Vadodara, 18 were caught selling drugs like Mifepristone and Misoprostol with a premium price tag illegally. The chemists had shops in posh areas like Karelibaug, Alkapuri, VIP road, Akota and railway station areas. In Ahmedabad, these drugs were largely sold illegally in Vatva and the adjoining industrial belt.
To deter any further sale of these 'Schedule H' drugs, the food and drugs department registered an FIR against a pathology lab in Chiloda area which also led to the arrest of one person.
Misoprostol causes the cervix to soften and the uterus to contract, resulting in the expulsion of the uterine contents. This leads to termination of the pregnancy. Mifepristone ends a pregnancy by blocking the receptors of the hormone progesterone, causing the lining of the uterine walls to shed during one's menstrual cycle. It also increases prostaglandin levels and dilates the cervix causing the fetus to flow out, facilitating abortion.
Koshia adds, "We are going to continue these raids and would round up errant chemists on a war footing. Our department realized during these raids that many chemists who sold these drugs over the counter, were not qualified to sell them."
Only three towns in these raids, which were conducted till Tuesday evening, have come out clean. These are Surendranagar , Porbandar and Kalol. "There will be more raids in these towns too."