Are you aware that Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR) claims about 100,000 lives annually in the US? Or that India, as a whole, has no comprehensive precautions in place to prevent ADR? Do you ensure that a pharmacist is present at your local chemist shop? Do you insist on a bill after buying medicine?

These are some basic questions rooted in various laws enacted in India to safeguard consumers. However, few bother to follow them, says Mahesh Zagade, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in Maharashtra and a retired IAS officer. He was reacting to the recent exposé by Nagpur rural police regarding a spurious drug case, which, according to him, is just the tip of the iceberg. “Unless the public becomes more vigilant in enforcing laws, the situation will not improve,” he warned, while speaking to mid-day in its last of a three-part series on spurious drugs.