In a historic milestone for its healthcare sector, Assam has ranked second in India for ensuring seamless access to medicines under the Essential Drugs List (EDL)
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued the national monthly rankings through its Drug and Vaccine Distribution Management System (DVDMS) portal.
While Bihar topped the national dashboard, Assam comfortably outperformed Punjab, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh, which followed in the third, fourth, and fifth positions.
Assam also led the Northeastern region by a wide margin, outstripping Arunachal Pradesh (10th) and Meghalaya (14th).
State Health Minister Ashok Singhal announced the achievement on social media. Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma praised the feat, calling it a proud moment and a significant boost to the region's public healthcare infrastructure. "What matters most is ensuring that medicines are available to people exactly when they need them," Sarma noted.
The state provides essential medicines entirely free of cost at government health facilities under the National Health Mission.
To minimize out-of-pocket expenses and enforce transparency, the government has further strengthened distribution monitoring with a recently implemented WhatsApp-based patient feedback system to quickly resolve localized medicine shortages.