The decision supersedes guidelines issued in September and seeks to balance the rapid expansion of the system with the financial health of Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadhi Kendras.
Officials privy to the development said the earlier push to achieve the ambitious target of 25,000 Kendras by March 2027 had led to the “zero distance” policy. However, this reportedly caused new stores to open too close to existing ones, hurting their earnings.
“The pharmaceutical department has received various representations from shop owner Jan Aushadhi that opening new shops closer to the existing ones is hurting their daily sales. It takes a lot of effort and investment to set up shop (before it pays off). Various states shared their concerns with the secretary (pharmaceutical department), which led to the decision,” said one of the two officials quoted above, both speaking on condition of anonymity.
Currently, more than 17,610 Jan Aushadhi Kendras are operated across India. These stores provide nearly 2,047 high-quality generic drugs and 300 surgical products at prices 50-90% lower than their brand-name alternatives. Revision of shop layout rules ensures that they remain financially viable while serving the public.
Inquiries sent to a spokesperson for the drugs department remained unanswered by press time.
These stores are run under Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) – a public welfare scheme overseen by the Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Bureau of India (PMBI) under the Ministry of Medicines, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers to provide quality generic medicines to the people at affordable prices.
PMBI Director General Suvasis Das issued a circular to states and Union Territories in November announcing the change in rules.
Stressing on strict enforcement of these norms, the official quoted earlier said, “All the officers in the states/UTs have been directed to follow the provisions while commissioning new Jan Aushadhi Kendras under PMBJP. This is being done to harmonize the economic sustainability of the shop owners and ensure availability of generic medicines across the country and keep the shops running.”
Under the new norms, the 500-metre rule is to be strictly enforced in seven designated metropolitan cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad, as well as in 46 other cities with a population of over one million, such as Lucknow, Patna and Pune. In addition, the classification of “over a million cities” is prepared based on the 2011 census and will be revised and updated according to the latest census when available.
A detailed look at more than 46 million cities reveals the broad impact of the policy in India’s most populous states. For example, Kerala sees a significant concentration of affected urban centres, including Kannur, Kochi, Kollam, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Thiruvananthapuram and Thrissur. Similarly, the urban landscape of Maharashtra is strongly represented, which applies to Aurangabad, Nagpur, Nashik and Vasai-Virar in addition to metros.
In Uttar Pradesh, the rule applies to key commercial centers such as Agra, Allahabad (Prayagraj), Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Meerut and Varanasi. Other notable cities on the list include Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot in Gujarat; Dhanbad and Ranchi in Jharkhand; and Ludhiana and Amritsar in Punjab.
For all other towns and rural areas, the required one-kilometre gap between shops is maintained.
A key exception is for state hospitals and clinics, where these distance rules do not apply and ensure easy access to medicines for patients.
