Following this, Coimbatore District Collector Pavankumar G. Giriyappanavar launched a pharmacy at Saibaba Colony by distributing medicines to customers.
Under this initiative, 42 pharmacies have been set up in Coimbatore district - 20 by entrepreneurs and 22 through cooperative societies. Entrepreneurs receive a ?3-lakh subsidy, while cooperative societies get ?2 lakh. Medicines worth ?52 lakh have been supplied from the Chinthamani district medicine warehouse. These pharmacies offer generic and branded medicines at reduced prices, with additional stock procured based on demand.
In Tiruppur district, 13 cooperative societies and four entrepreneurs will operate Mudhalvar Marundhagam. Tamil Development and Information Minister M.P. Saminathan inaugurated one such pharmacy on the Uthukuli Primary Agricultural Cooperative Society premises.
The Minister said generic medicines would be procured through the Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation (TNMSC), while branded medicines, surgical items, and other drugs would be sourced via the Tamil Nadu Consumer Cooperative Federation (TNCCF). Cooperative societies would receive a ?2 lakh subsidy - ?1 lakh for infrastructure and medicines worth ?1 lakh while entrepreneurs would be provided ?3 lakh, with ?1.5 lakh allocated for infrastructure and ?1.5 lakh for medicines.
Applicants requiring additional loans could apply through cooperative banks online. Loans up to ?1 lakh required two personal guarantors at 9% interest, while higher amounts need immovable property as collateral, also at 9% interest. The repayment period ranged from three to five years, the Minister added.