SECL Opens Amrit Pharmacies at Hospitals: Subsidized Medicines

New Delhi, Jan 31 (PTI) Government-owned Coal India arm South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL) will become the first coal company to open Amrit Pharmacy stores in hospitals at its premises to sell medicines at subsidised rates, the government said on Wednesday.

SECL, which runs in-house hospitals at its campuses for its employees, has entered into a pact with HLL Lifecare Ltd, a public sector enterprise under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, to set up Amrit Pharmacy stores.

"The Amrit pharmacies in SECL hospitals will ensure availability of generic and life-saving branded drugs under one roof. These pharmacies will provide medicines, implants, surgical consumables etc. for common diseases as well as critical conditions, at highly subsidised rates, which will greatly benefit in and out patients consisting of SECL employees as well as the general public visiting these hospitals," the coal ministry said in a statement.

In the initial phase, the stores would be set up at hospitals at SECL headquarters Bilaspur and central hospitals in the operational areas of Gevra, Sohagpur and Chirimiri.

AMRIT-- Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment -- is a flagship scheme of the health ministry aimed at providing medicines for various diseases including critical illness like cancer and cardiovascular diseases at highly subsidised rates to the public.