The ongoing protest against the privatisation of IMPC today marks its 100th day

The ongoing protest against the privatisation of IMPC today marks its 100th day. The voice of the employee union, however, is getting drowned in the noise of local body elections.

Ramnagar: The Indian Medicines Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited (IMPC), located at Mohan on the border of Almora and Nainital districts, is celebrating the 100th day of its ongoing protest against privatisation on Saturday. The protest, which started on October 10, is being led by the IMPC Employee Union in front of the factory gate. While the initial phase of the protest saw a strong outcry against privatization, it has now been overshadowed by the noise of the local body elections. Despite this, the morale of the factory workers remains high.

The IMPC plant, situated on the banks of the Kosi River in Mohan, was established in 1978 by the then Union Minister for Industries, Narayan Datt Tiwari. It is the only government-owned institution under the Ministry of AYUSH for the production of Ayurvedic and Unani medicines. This plant has been granted the status of a Mini Ratna by the government. The plant manufactures 1,200 types of medicinal products, including Ayurvedic and Unani medicines, and supplies them to central hospitals, research institutes, and state government hospitals. IMPC also produces trial drugs for research institutes like CCRAS and CCRUM. Its Immunity Booster, the AYUSH Raksha Kit, played a significant role in boosting immunity and controlling the spread of COVID-19. IMPC supports small and medium industries by prioritizing procurement from them and has become a livelihood center for numerous local families.

Despite being highly profitable, the plant has long been under the watch of several private entities, leading to attempts at privatization over the last five years. In response to a letter from BJP MP Ajay Bhatt, the Ministry of AYUSH clarified that the decision to privatize IMPC was a policy decision approved by the Cabinet of the Modi government. Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, the Secretary of the Ministry of AYUSH, stated that the privatization process was being managed by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, Ministry of Finance, Government of India, and that the Ministry of AYUSH had no role in it. He further explained that despite repeated requests from the Ministry of AYUSH to halt the privatization, no positive response had been received.

Employee leaders have accused BJP leaders of continuously misleading them regarding the privatization. They allege that just as the Modi government has handed over several public sector assets to its capitalist friends, it is now attempting to hand over IMPC to private entities, betraying the youth of the state.

During the protest, several employees, including Jaypal Singh Rawat, Bhagwati Prasad Joshi, Vikas Bisht, Himanshu Sati, Bhupinder Singh Adhikari, Mohammad Abdul Naeem, Gopal Singh Rawat, Shanti Prasad, Bhajan Singh, Ambaram, Kamlesh Devi, Diwan Singh Bisht, and Kundan Singh Mehra, were present.