Ramdev's 'Putravati' medicine under scanner

HARDWAR: The district health department has begun a probe into a medicine branded 'Putravati', which is reported to help women to give birth to sons, allegedly manufactured by Swami Ramdev's Hardwar based Divya pharmacy.

Two days ago, the State Health Department, at the behest of the Centre, asked the district health department to find out whether Swami Ramdev'S pharmacy was manufacturing the drug.

Archarya Bal Krishan, the general secretary of Patanjali Yoga Peeth, the apex organisation which runs all the institutions, including the pharmacy, of Swami Ramdev, has refuted all the allegations and termed them as a 'conspiracy'' of the health department to malign the yoga guru.

The Chief Medical Officer(CMO), Hardwar, Dr RS Puri said there was no mention of the medicine in the catalogue of the
medicines manufactured by Swami Ramdev's pharmacy.

"We also sent a decoy to purchase the medicine, but the salesmen of the pharmacy told him that no such medicine is sold by them," the CMO said.

A legal notice will be sent to the pharmacy to explain as to why the pharmacy was reportedly making publicity of the medicine possessing the property of helping women to conceive male child, Dr Puri further said.

Former chairperson of the State Women Commission, Dr Santosh Chauhan said manufacturing such medicine or making publicity of any such medicine was an act of discrimination against the girl child and it was an offence under the Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994.

She asked for a high level probe to find out whether Swami Ramdev's pharmacy was really  manufacturing such a medicine or some body else had published pamphlets under Swamiji's name to sell his own medicine.

Meanwhile, according to reports from Dehra Dun, members of All India Democratic Women's Association (ADWA), were vehemently protesting against the pharmacy 'producing' the medicine, and sought stringent action against Ramdev for 'breaching' PNDT Act.

Scores of women reached Dehra Dun Collectorate sloganeering against Swami Ramdev and handed over a memorandum addressed to the Union Health Minister and State Health Minister through District Administration.

ADWA General Secretary Indu Nautiyal, spearheading the protest rally said earlier too, Ramdev had breached the Labour Law. She alleged that the previous Congress and present BJP Governments both have soft corner for the Guru.

"Though the matter has been handed over to the Chief Medical Officer for investigation, doubt over transparent probe still lingers," she said.