Kathmandu, August 19:

The Birendranagar-based State Ayurveda Pharmacy has come across a shortage of human resource and physical capital due to sheer ignorance on part of the government authorities. Ayurveda pharmacies are reeling under negligence after the State government integrated its structures into health offices last year for the purpose of lessening administrative expenses.

Pharmacy Chief Dr Shankar Prasad Rijal said there was no availability of human resources required for the operation of state-level pharmacy. He shared the pharmacy has the permanent posts of one doctor, one kabiraj, two baidya, one accountant, one lab assistant and two helpers. However, the postings are not adequate to run the Pharmacy in a full-fledged manner.

Though the Karnali State Ministry of Social Development was approached for the arrangement of additional human resources and physical means it has not yet been addressed, he added. “There is no single post in administration and pharmacy”, Rijal said, adding, “The state government transformed the Bheri zonal Ayurveda Pharmacy into the State Ayurveda Hospital but did not pay attention to the up-gradation which has relegated the entire Ayurveda sector of the state to back-burner”.

All the machines available at the Pharmacy have not come into use in lack of proper human resources. The Department of Health Service had provided some machinery equipment used for manufacturing drug tablets and packaging medicines some 23 years ago. Only one of them is working now.

Daily 150 patients are visiting the pharmacy for services. According to Dr Rijal, the collection and processing of herbals available at local level have not been carried out in lack of human and physical resources. There is a demand to upgrade the pharmacy to a 50-bed hospital.

“Ayurveda medicine has become the first choice of the locals but the government has failed to come up with appropriate policy and programmes to address the need”, said management committee chair Binod Dahakal. Likewise, Nepal Ayurveda Health Workers Society Karbali State chair Deependra Kandel blamed the state government for devising wrong policy choice leading to the ineffective operation of the Ayurveda institutions.