September 16, 2025

KOLKATA is feeling the heat as medicine supplies hit a pause! The wait is on for new GST rates to come alive from September 22. The tax on all medicines is slashed from 12% to a sweet 5%, and that's not all – 33 lifesaving and three cancer drugs are getting a full tax holiday! But here's the twist: pharmacies and retailers are playing it safe. They’re biting their nails and delaying purchases, not wanting to be stuck with medicines priced at the old, higher rates. Prithwi Bose, the general secretary of the Bengal Chemists and Druggists Association, spills the beans: "Most retailers are unwilling to buy medicines at 12% GST fearing they may not be able to exhaust the stock by Sept 21. So, many retailers will have low stock till then." Manufacturers, on the other hand, are in a mad rush to print the new prices on fresh medicine batches to meet the September 22 deadline. But this means stock pipelines are running dry. Somnath Ghosh of Metro Pharma adds, "Pipeline stocks have already started drying up since manufacturers are now printing new MRPs. We have earlier seen that it takes almost a month for supplies to normalise every time there is a change in price." Wholesalers will soon supply medicines at these reduced rates after September 22, but don't expect the shelves to fill up instantly. Nearly 25,000 retail drug stores across the state will take time to refill their stocks. And hold on, because the Durga Puja festival brings another challenge! There will be heavy restrictions on goods vehicle movement. Many carrying and forwarding agents will shut shop till almost Lakshmi Puja. This means further delays for medicines. Mr. Bose warns, "Truck movement will be severely restricted across the state during the pujas. Many carrying and forwarding agents will also remain closed till almost Lakshmi Puja. So, by the end of Sept, there will be minimal supplies of medicines. The situation will normalise only after that." There’s another headache for big pharmacy chains like Dhanwantary and Metro Pharma. They stock thousands of medicine varieties—between 10,000 and 17,000! Each one needs the new price updated in the billing system post-September 21. Rajendra Khandelwal of Dhanwantary Pharma says, "We will start updating our billing software after Sept 21 midnight. This will be a challenging task for large retailers and even more difficult for small ones." So, the scene in Kolkata is set: medicine shops keeping inventory slim, manufacturers hustling to meet new pricing laws, and a festive season that slows down supplies even more. Patience will be the key till the magical Lakshmi Puja arrives and medicine flow returns to normal!

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Tags: Gst rate change, Medicine supply, Pharmacies, Mrp, Durga puja, Bengal chemists association,