Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendra – Benefits, and Application Process

In developing countries such as India, healthcare services have not yet reached a universal scale. Millions of people are still left out of the health care safety net and this is mainly visible in rural areas. The primary reason is the unavailability of quality medicine at an economical cost.

Branded medicines and other medical equipment such as surgical consumables are out of financial reach for the millions of those who are vulnerable to infectious and life-threatening diseases. It has been the top focus of the present government to enhance the quality of healthcare services and make them available to the people living in rural, semi-urban and semi-rural areas. To establish and reinforce strong socialist connotations in its welfare programs the Pradhanmantri Jan Aushadhi Yojana was initiated with an objective to serve the healthcare needs of the underprivileged.

What is Pradhan mantri Jan Aushadhi Yojana?

Offering inexpensive generic medicines to a vast majority of the citizens of the country by making healthcare facilities accessible both infrastructure-wise and economy-wise is the core objective of PM-JAY.

Salient points of PM-JAY

• Due to the present pandemic circumstances, the importance of initiatives of this has never been higher in our collective health policy consciousness.
• There has been increased demand for the opening of generic Aushadhi Kendras, due to the popularity and demand of low-cost medicines cutting across all sections of society.
•  There are nearly 7000 Aushadhi Yojana Kendras that are at their prime functioning across the country. The medicines available in these regions are diverse and cater to the medical requirements of all diseases in the spectrum.
• 8000 generic compounds are marketed at a fraction of the cost of the branded medicines, which is a modern-day miracle in terms of people’s healthcare administration.

Why generic medicine is best for health and the economy?

1. Generic medications are in no way inferior to big brand names. PM-JAY medications go through a rigorous testing process from different medical institutions of the Government and then only their names are replaced with similar-sounding brand-name drugs.

2. The quality of clinical trials for testing which generic medications are on par with the International standards of brand medications. The safety and efficacy of generic drugs have been established at top peer levels with the World health organization recognizing their life savings presence in developing countries.

 3. One of the main factors for the demand for generic drugs is the price factor. With the drugs costing nearly 85% less than its costly alternative in allopathic medicines, the demand for the establishment of Jan Aushadhi Kendra among skilled individuals is increasing.  

4. Jan Aushadhi Kendra is a stable employment generator thanks to the focus of the present government on enhancing traditional medicine such as Ayurveda, Homeopathy and Unani.

Unique differentiating factors of Jan Aushadhi Store when compared to other healthcare from programs in India

•  Jan Aushadhi Store has a pan-India presence with multiple outlets cropping up around street corners.
• The trickle-down benefits system of the Jan Aushadhi store is unparalleled as it offers quality services to the public. The general working hours of Jan Aushadhi store are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
•  Traditional medicines, therapeutic compounds and other uniquely indigenous medicinal systems are available in the Jan Aushadhi store. In fact, this new perspective is what makes it more effective to combat certain local infections.
•  The surgical items and medicines are also available at a cheap rate. People can purchase out of the hospital surgical items at a decrease rate when compared to normal allopathic chemist shops.
•  Individuals can purchase over-the-counter (OTC) products without the help of a prescription from a private medical practitioner.
• When it comes to ensuring the safety quality and efficacy of the and drugs to the citizens, the policy of the government is to guarantee period cycle and consistent checks on the various operations used to produce these medicines in Jan Aushadhi stores also known as super stocks.
• Due to linkages with non-governmental organizations, state governments, private hospitals and charitable institutions, there is a fertile arena for unemployed entrepreneurs to improve their skill sets in the medical sector by making a fresh application for Jan Aushadhi stores.

The important point to be noted

Even if the entrepreneur does not have a background in pharmaceuticals he or she is allowed to set up a JAY store. The government has created a singular condition that entrepreneurs should hire at least one graduate slash postgraduate in pharmaceutical sciences in the proposed store.

Who are eligible to open a Jan Aushadhi Yojana store?

Maximum coverage of the medicines is achieved by expanding the reach of Jan Aushadhi stores across the nook and corner of the country. The policies of the government are designed in such a way that entrepreneurs get lucrative incentives by opening Jan Aushadhi Yojana.

The need for credit for opening a medical store is also taken care of by the government by introducing new guidelines to the financial institutions to meet the credit requirements of the entrepreneurs and unemployed pharmacists. A brief overview regarding the eligibility conditions of opening a PM Jan Aushadhi Yojana Kendra are given as below:

•  The applicant should be a registered doctor
•  The entrepreneurs should be a registered medical practitioner
•  The applicants should hold a BPharma degree or a doctorate in Pharma.

Any one of the above conditions has to be satisfied. There is a caveat in the government policies that first preference to those applicants will be given who plan to set up the medical store in government hospital premises.

This is done so as to increase the benefits to common citizens by the medical stores. Hence the government is more inclined to give permission to non-government organizations and charitable institutions for setting up medical stores on government hospital premises. The eligibility conditions are relaxed for those who are undergoing studies and who belong to the lower socioeconomic category and are given first preference when sanctioning the loan applications.

Stipulated conditions for successful application for a Jan Aushadhi Yojana Store

• The application seekers should be in possession of a leased shop space of at least one 20 square feet (or) self-owned premises. Legal documentation of the property should be very robust and there should be a clear succession line so as to avoid legal disputes in the future.
• The pharmacist supposed to be running the Jan Aushadhi Yojana should be registered under the state pharmacy council.
•  Applicants from the SC-ST category for the differently-abled categories need to offer the required authorization in the form of certificates as identity proof.
•  After meeting the above-listed stipulations applications can be instantly made for opening a Jan Aushadhi Kendra. The application process happens both in offline and online mechanisms. The application can be downloaded from the government portal of Jan Aushadhi Yojana.
• The complete application form with all the listed documentation needs to be sent to the Bureau of Pharma which is the central nodal agency.
  Read More – business loan for doctors

Table indicating Required Documentation

What are the diverse incentives and profits that can be achieved by opening a Jan Aushadhi Kendra?

Jan Aushadhi Yojana is at the apex portion of lucrative business opportunities. Reasonable profits can be earned along with getting a stable source of employment and status in society. Apart from personal and professional satisfaction, Jan Aushadhi Kendra makes sure that entrepreneurs participate by taking an active role in the healthcare scenario in India.

Below given are the major monetary incentives that can be attributed to the operators of Jan Aushadhi Kendra

• A 20% margin on the maximum retail price is offered to entrepreneurs and shop owners of Jan Aushadhi Yojana shops. The same margin exists at 10% if the shop opener assumes a distributor position.
• Since the Jan Aushadhi Kendra is connected centrally to the Bureau of Pharmacy, sales of generic drugs will entail a commission to the shop owner.
• This commission amount can go up to as high as Rupees 2.5 lacs on an annual basis. On a general note, 15% of the total monthly sales for Rs 10,000 can be taken as the upper limit when fixing commission.
• And the incentive provided for Naxal affected states and Northeastern states is increased to Rs 15000. People belonging to SC/ST social category and people who are differently-abled are given financial assistance up to Rs 50000 in advance before opening the shop as a sign of encouragement from the government
• All store operators are eligible to avail of a Rs 1,00,000 interest-free loan which can be used to increase the interior decorations by deploying modern furniture and fittings. An additional amount of Rs 50,000 is also offered to spruce up the technological infrastructure such as printers and other digital devices.

Some important points to be noted by shop owners regarding their commitments to the government when opening a Jan Aushadhi Yojana Kendra:

1. Equipment and supplies

 Prospective shop owners should not make use of fixtures, signs, equipment and paper goods that contain their own marketing logos. All public information branding exercises should be under the name of Pradhan Mantri Jan Aushadhi Kendra in the stipulated format.

 2. Participation in marketing programs is essential

 The store applicant should in principle, acknowledge their wide-ranging and active participation in various marketing affiliate programs. The objective of this is to increase the value, expand the recognition and reinforce the reputation of the Jan Aushadhi campaign among the masses. The marketing problems and promotions are given Government support.

 3. Regulatory compliance

 All state regulations, ordinances and government shall be carried out in complete good faith by the shop owner. The appropriate drug sale licenses should be derived from competent authorities so as to maintain strict compliance with the applicable drug and cosmetic act, sanitation, health and fire codes.

 4. Rectifying biological contamination

 If it is observed that any generic medicine that is being sold in Jan Aushadhi Kendra is contaminated, cut and torn; then the concurrent laws will be applied in accordance with the local public health safety act.

The loan applicant should take preventive measures to avoid contamination and expiration. Unsanitary conditions near Jan Aushadhi Kendra are not tolerated and this can lead to cancellation of license when strict hygiene is not followed in the surroundings.

 5. Inspection of shops

The government has increased the focus on meeting pharmaceutical compliance with respect to Jan Aushadhi Kendra. All medical shops are liable for instant inspections made by government representatives, for which no prior notice will be given. The applicants are required to maintain proper documentation regarding the generic medicines and the vendors such as recordings, photographs and invoices.

 6. Marketing with medical representatives

 A Statement of purpose is drawn between the government and the shop owner in which it is agreed upon that the services of private medical representatives will be taken to increase the marketing scope of generic drugs. This is done with the objective to enhance their popularity in rural areas.

 7. Compensation

Since this is a flagship exercise for the government, the extra costs incurred regarding the setting up of new health kiosks, introducing digital devices for telemedicine, marketing and promotion campaigns are well compensated by giving low-interest loans to the shop owners.

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