Ranbaxy to study root cause of deadly diseases and suggest preventive measures to make Punjab disease free
CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal asked the Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. to prepare a comprehensive plan to undertake extensive research to study the root cause of the deadly diseases and suggest measures for its effective eradication to make Punjab a disease free state. 

Presiding over a meeting with a delegation of Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. led by its CEO-cum-Managing Director Atul Sobti here on Wednesday morning, Badal assured the delegation that the state government would extend full support and cooperation in realizing the company’s plan to provide free health care facilities to the people in the rural area. 

He asked them to set up a super speciality cancer hospital in the state besides pressing into service fully equipped mobile medical & health care vans to provide free treatment to the needy in the rural segment at their doorsteps. 

Showing concern over the growing trend of drug addiction amongst the youth in the state, the Chief Minister said that the state government was seriously contemplating to take certain far more stringent action to check the trafficking of narcotics in the state and for this purpose NGOs could be sensitized to play a pro-active role to bring awareness amongst the masses.  He further asked the company to include this aspect in its health care perspective plan. 

Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Ranbaxy, Atul Sobti assured Badal that the company was fully committed to honour its commitment in health care sector but being a company with foreign direct investment it had certain constraints over adopting any educational institution. 

He further made it clear that within a month company would work out a detailed plan to provide free health care facilities in the rural areas.  He said that at present two medical mobile vans had already been pressed into service in the villages of Mohali and Ropar districts. 

He further committed to provide free health care facilities in all the Adarsh schools by providing free medicines.   

He reiterated that being one of the reputed and biggest companies in the world, Ranbaxy was committed to initiate better health care schemes in collaboration with the state government to provide free medical treatment.  He also revealed that the company would also work out the modalities to establish a big hospital to cater the health care needs of rural sector. 

The other members of the delegation included President & CFO Omesh Sethi, Head Global Legal Rajbeer S Sachdeva and General Manager Liaison & Administration SK Bahl.Advocate General HS Mattewal and Special Principal Secretary to Chief Minister KJS Cheema were also present.