Reconsider the ban: on oxytocin
The Union Health Ministry’s ban on the retail sale and private manufacture of oxytocin, expected to kick off on September 1, is an extremely ill-thought-out one. The drug, a synthetic version of a human hormone, is a life-saver for women. Doctors use it to induce labour in pregnant women and to stem postpartum bleeding. So critical is its role in maternal health that the World Health Organization recommends it as the drug of choice in postpartum haemorrhage.
The government’s ban ignores this, and is motivated instead by the misuse of the hormone in the dairy industry. Because oxytocin stimulates lactation in cattle, dairy farmers inject the drug indiscriminately to increase milk production. This has spawned several unlicensed facilities that manufacture the drug for veterinary use. It is a problem that needs solving. But the right approach would have been to strengthen regulation, and crack down on illegal production. Much is unknown about the ill-effects of oxytocin on cattle.
One of the concerns was that oxytocin leads to infertility in dairy animals, and some studies show this to be true. It has also been linked to mastitis, a painful inflammation of the udder. Milk consumers worry about exposure to it through dairy products. The science behind some of these claims is unclear. In a Lok Sabha answer in 2015, the National Dairy Research Institute was quoted as saying there was no evidence that oxytocin led to infertility. A 2014 study by researchers at the National Institute of Nutrition concluded that oxytocin content in buffalo milk did not alter with injections.
However, even if the ill-effects of oxytocin are real, a ban is not the answer. Oxytocin is simply too important to Indian women, 45,000 of whom die due to causes related to childbirth each year. A parallel to the situation lies in the misuse of antibiotics in humans and poultry. So heavily are these drugs used that they are causing deadly bacteria to become resistant to them. Yet, despite calls for a complete ban on over-the-counter sale of antibiotics, India has been reluctant to do so.
In much of rural India, more people still die due to a lack of antibiotics than due to antibiotic-resistance. This has swung the cost-benefit ratio against outright bans. In oxytocin’s case, if only a single public sector unit manufactures the drug, as the government plans, this could lead to drug shortages and price hikes. Karnataka Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Limited, the drugmaker tasked with manufacturing oxytocin, has been asked to cap the price at ₹16.56 for 1 ml of a five international unit (IU) solution. However, some private manufacturers were selling it for ₹4 until now. Monopolising production will remove the low-price options from the market. Such a situation may benefit cattle, but will put the lives of many women at risk.
courtesy : thehindu.com
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CM Siddaramaiah rebuts BJP's '63 per cent' corruption charge
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday refuted BJP leader R Ashoka's accusation regarding a judge's alleged remark about "63 per cent corruption" in the state, saying the opposition is "twisting facts" and attempting to shift blame from its own past tenure.
In a post on X, Siddaramaiah said the Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly had “tried to hang the BJP’s bell of sins around the Congress government's necks and has ended up embarrassing himself” by misinterpreting the Upa Lokayukta’s comments.
"In the report submitted in November 2019, Honourable Upa Lokayukta B Veerappa had stated that there was 63 per cent corruption in the State. At the time he submitted the report, the BJP government led by Yediyurappa was in power in the State,” he clarified.
Countering Ashoka’s demand for a CBI probe, Siddaramaiah listed a series of scandals under the previous BJP government, saying corruption cases were "not just one or two".
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He accused the former regime of "shameless loot" even during the COVID crisis and said "a minimum 40 per cent commission was the norm across departments".
Referring to the death of contractor Santosh Patil, alleged irregularities in irrigation projects, the PSI recruitment scam and charges levelled by BJP MLC H Vishwanath against current state party president B Y Vijayendra, he said: “If we begin listing the scams from the BJP era, an entire epic volume could be written.”
Targetting the Centre, Siddaramaiah said under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who proclaims “Na khaaoonga, na khaane doonga” (Neither shall I take kickbacks, nor allow others to take it), India was 'sinking into corruption'.
He cited Transparency International rankings that place the country 96th globally.
Dismissing Ashoka’s claims as “foolishness”, Siddaramaiah asserted that his administration was ensuring transparency in “recruitment to transfers”, preventing misuse of money and power.
“Mr R Ashoka, the monumental corruption you created cannot be cleaned up in just two and a half years,” the Chief Minister said. “Give us some time — we will set everything right.”
Ashoka demanded the transfer of all corruption cases against the Congress government in the state to the CBI, and called for its resignation.
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His demand comes following an alleged remark by Upalokayukta Justice B Veerappa that the level of corruption in Karnataka stood at '63 per cent'.
"We had fought against this corrupt government both inside and outside the assembly when the MUDA scam, Valmiki ST Development Corporation scam surfaced. At that time, CM Siddaramaiah repeatedly asked for evidence of corruption. As per our constitution, courts and judges hold big positions and what they say is regarded as order or a record," Ashoka, also the Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said now a judge has stated that the government in Karnataka is "63 per cent corrupt".
"We-- BJP-- had made a 60 per cent commission charge against this government, but a judge has said it is not 60, it is 63 per cent. He (judge) said it at an event where he shared the stage with other judges and senior advocates. He has alleged that there is corruption in almost all departments, nothing happens without paying commission. Karnataka is in fifth position in corruption," he claimed.
At a public event on Wednesday, Justice Veerappa had claimed that the corruption in Kerala stood at 10 per cent, while it is 63 per cent in Karnataka.
He had said that he was able to witness it after becoming the Upalokayukta.
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Recalling that the Congress government, after coming to power, formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the "40 per cent commission" charge it had made against the previous BJP government, Ashoka asked -- what probe will the government order, following the 63 per cent corruption allegation against it.
"If you have any shame left, resign and go... you formed SIT against us, constitute CBI probe on this (allegations against Congress govt), if you have guts, let the corruption in various departments come out in the open," he added.
According to the LoP, Karnataka has become an "ATM" for the Congress party to fund any state elections. Power goes to those who give more money to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
"For the recent Bihar elections, more than Rs 300 crore has gone from Karnataka itself. A breakfast meeting of Ministers was called to collect this money," he said, adding that Congress is synonymous with corruption, and corruption is Congress' home deity.
