The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), on November 4, 2026, has issued instructions regarding quality control and testing of Ayurvedic and Homoeopathic drugs supplied to ESI institutions. The instructions require all user units to ensure testing of drugs supplied under DG ESIC Ayurvedic and Homoeopathic Rate Contracts, as well as drugs procured through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), through Government or Government-approved laboratories.
All ESI institutions are required to send samples of supplied drugs for regular and random testing at the time of supply and, where necessary, during their shelf life or whenever any defect is noticed. Details of samples sent for testing and samples collected by State Drug Inspectors must be reported to ESIC Headquarters in the prescribed formats. In cases where a batch is declared Not of Standard Quality (NSQ), the test report and relevant details must be submitted to Headquarters. Institutions must verify the ESIC website to avoid duplicate testing of batches already reported, discontinue the use of NSQ batches and initiate appropriate penal action, including replacement, in accordance with the applicable rate contract or GeM terms. The instructions also require institutions to take necessary steps for entering into a separate drug-testing rate contract for AYUSH medicines.
The instructions are mandatory for all Heads of ESI Institutions. The responsibility for any legal consequences arising from non-adherence to drug quality requirements shall lie solely with the Head of the concerned institution. Accordingly, all ESIC medical colleges, hospitals and other institutions must ensure implementation of the prescribed testing, reporting and corrective-action procedures.
[ESIC Letter No. U-19011/2/2025-AYUSH]
