Gujarat govt launches mobile drug testing lab

Gujarat government today rolled out a mobile drug testing laboratory, which it said is the first-of-its kind facility in country to conduct the real-time analysis of contents of various medicines and to check adulteration.
The laboratory, set up in a van, can conduct on-the-spot test on medicines and give results on their contents thus keeping a tab on spurious drug-sellers, Health Minister Nitin Patel said.
"Gujarat has become the first state to have such a facility. This mobile testing van will have several high-end equipment to test all kinds of medicines and give results within 20 to 25 seconds about their actual contents as well as adulteration," he said.

The lab has been built at the cost of Rs one crore and is capable of testing even Ayurvedic medicines to find out the banned chemical contents in them without opening the seal, the minister said.
"Some of the equipment used in this lab include Raman spectrophotometer, near-infrared and X-Ray fluorescence analyser. We can send this mobile van anywhere in state to check the counterfeit medicines being sold at shops or at hospitals," said Patel.
Apart from these places, the facility will be used for testing medicines purchased and distributed by the Gujarat Medical Services Corporation and for testing random samples collected from manufacturers, private and government hospitals, he added.