SC to hear plea concerning supply, quality of ARV-therapy drugs on December 3

New Delhi, Nov 11 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would hear on December 3 a plea that has raised concerns over the supply and quality of anti-retroviral (ARV) therapy drugs for treating HIV patients in the country.

The ARV therapy involves treating people infected with HIV using anti-HIV drugs.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was informed that 16 states have not filed their responses to the affidavit filed by the petitioners in the matter in September last year.

"It would be open for these 16 states to file their response, if they so desire, in the meantime," the bench said.

The court was hearing a plea filed in 2022 by NGO Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS and others.

Senior advocate Anand Grover, appearing in the court for the petitioners, said the plea raises an important issue concerning the quality of drugs for treating HIV patients.

When he said 16 states are yet to file their affidavits, the bench asked, "How long can we keep the matter pending if the states are not filing it?" The counsel for the Centre and some of the states said they have already filed their affidavits.

In February, the court asked the states to file their responses over the quality of ARV-therapy drugs within a month.

The petitioners' counsel had then said only four states had furnished their responses to the affidavit that had highlighted certain issues, including about the process of procurement and the quality of drugs.

The Centre, in July last year, told the apex court that it was ensuring the availability of free, lifelong ARV drugs for all people living with HIV through ARV-therapy centres under the National AIDS Control Programme.

The petitioners' counsel had earlier said given the developments that took place since the filing of the plea, there was no shortage of drugs at present, but flagged issues regarding the procurement and quality of the drugs. PTI ABA RC