New Delhi, Sep 12 : The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday announced prohibiting the manufacture for sale or distribution for human use of 328 Fixed Dose Combinations (FDCs) drugs with immediate effect.

It has also restricted the manufacture, sale or distribution of six FDCs subject to certain conditions, the Ministry said in a statement. FDCs are two or more drugs combined in a fixed ratio into a single dosage form.

The Centre, in March 2016, had prohibited the manufacture for sale and distribution of 349 FDCs but this was contested by the affected manufacturers in High Courts and the Supreme Court.

Complying with the December 2017 Supreme Court judgment, the Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) examined the matter and, in its report to the Centre, recommended prohibition of the FDCs saying there was no therapeutic justification for the ingredients contained in them and that these FDCs may involve risk to human beings.

Earlier, an expert committee appointed by the Centre too had made similar observations.

Considering the recommendations of DTAB and the expert committee, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, through a gazette notification, prohibited the FDCs.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



New Delhi (PTI): Over 13,000 teaching positions are vacant in Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) across the country, the Ministry of Education informed the Lok Sabha on Monday.

The information was shared by Union Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary in response to a written question.

"A total of 8,618 and 5,083 teaching posts are lying vacant in KVs and JNVs, respectively. Vacancies keep on arising due to opening of new schools, retirement, resignation, promotion of employees, transfer, employees going on lien to another department and upgradation of schools," Chaudhary said.

"Filling up of vacancies is a continuous process and efforts are made to fill up the vacancies as per the provisions of the relevant recruitment rules of KVs and NVs," he added.

The minister noted that teachers are also engaged on contractual basis for temporary duration by KVs and NVs to ensure that the teaching-learning process is not hampered.

"Efforts are made to recruit regular teachers at the earliest so that interest of students does not suffer. The consistently high percentage results achieved by KVs and NVs over the years clearly demonstrate that academic standards and students’ performance are duly maintained and are not compromised," he said.