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Firstly, those for minor ailments and which because
of its harmless nature are not on the poisons list and can therefore be sold by listed sellers of
poisons without the advice from doctors or
pharmacists.
Secondly, those which can be poisonous and therefore
harmful, but would still be safe if taken with the
advice of a pharmacist, working under an authorized
seller of poison. (Part I poison under the First
Schedule.)
Thirdly, those drugs which can be poisonous and
therefore harmful, the seriousness of which warrants
prescription by doctors. (Part I poison under the
Third Schedule.)
This classification exists in legislation because of
the need for Consumer Protection.
SPAL
Before the introduction of this Bill, a listed seller
can dispense doctor's prescription if the drugs contained therein are not on the poisons list. Since a usual doctor's prescription would include all those 3 categories of drugs, how could the lay public know the difference between these drugs
and the difference between listed or authorized sellers of
poisons for that matter? If listed sellers of poisons are approached, business being the name of the game, it becomes a temptation for the listed sellers to both illegally stock and sell drugs under the poisons list. They even make use of the loopholes of the law by stocking drugs on the poisons list at another address or circumvent control by offering such drugs
under the guise of free supply.
This had been amply demonstrated from the breakdown of statistics on the prosecution and conviction in which 79 listed sellers of poisons were convicted in 1985 of illegal