Jan Ausadhi Abhiyan, the National campaign to ensure universal reach of generic medicines across the population, was rolled out in Orissa while Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Srikant Jena inaugurating three stores .

The stores have been set up at Capital Hospital and the Red Cross State Headquarters here along with the district headquarter hospital, Khurda . Orissa is the fifth state in the country and the first in the East to have launched the campaign to provide generic medicines at vastly lower prices than the market to the needy and ailing.

In future, generic medicine stores would be opened in all the 626 district headquarter hospitals in the country soon, be extended to the subdivision, and block hospitals in a phasewise manner. States like Punjab and Rajasthan have made rapid strides in the campaign extension and opened as many as 30 stores as of now.

The campaign is being implemented with the help of Pharma PSUs like Indian Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited, Hindustan Antibiotics Limited, Karnataka Antibiotics and Pharmaceuticals, Bengal Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals and Rajasthan Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited in association with State Health and Family Welfare Department. Generic medicines would cost substantially lower than the branded ones.