New Delhi

Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Sunday inaugurated India’s first retail facility at AIIMS to provide drugs for cancer and cardiovascular diseases at highly discounted rates under central government’s AMRIT programme.

The pharmacy named AMRIT — Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment — will have 202 drugs of cancer and cardiovascular diseases where the price is going to be reduced on an average by 60 to 90 per cent.

“Under the AMRIT programme, we want to give medicines at an affordable cost. We have identified 202 drugs of cancer and cardio-vascular diseases where the price is going to reduced on an average by 60 to 90 per cent. In the same way, 148 cardiac implants will be given from the centre and sold here and their cost will be reduced by 50 to 60 per cent,” Mr Nadda said on the occasion.

Calling it a pilot project, the minister said: “After 15 days we are going to review the programme, and in the coming times, we will try to replicate it in all central hospitals.”

AMRIT will be managed by the governm