PMC steps up fight against antimicrobial resistance with awareness drive

Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), with CHRI and GSK, launched a district-level initiative to promote rational antibiotic use and safe disposal of unused and expired medicines.

A workshop on July 28 attended by 76 people, including civic medical officers and biomedical waste management experts, marked the launch of PMC's community-led safe disposal plan.

Mahesh Zagade, former Maharashtra principal secretary, described irrational antibiotic use as a 'crime against humanity' and warned of AMR as a major public health emergency.

Dr Vishal Kulkarni cited 1.29 million global deaths directly linked to AMR in 2019, and a survey by Dr Sumit Deole found only 2% of respondents had received guidance on AMR and safe drug disposal.

RNisarg Foundation presented a green pharmacy initiative and a reverse-chain model for collecting and disposing of expired medicines.