Indian Railways Explores Tie-Up with Online Pharmacies for Medicine Home Delivery

The proposed service would operate through RailTel's Hospital Management Information System (HMIS), which already supports appointment scheduling, laboratory result access, and electronic medical records.

Indian Railways is considering a partnership with online pharmacies to provide doorstep delivery of medicines from its hospitals, officials confirmed. RailTel Corporation of India Limited plans to invite tenders in January 2025, with bids evaluated based on discounts offered on retail medicine prices.

The proposed service would operate through RailTel's Hospital Management Information System (HMIS), which already supports appointment scheduling, laboratory result access, and electronic medical records.

According to the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), Indian Railways spent INR 20,734 Cr on healthcare between 2017 and 2022, with medicine procurement accounting for 11% of the expenditure. Healthcare constitutes 1-2% of the Railways' annual revenue and capital expenditure.

A CAG report presented in Parliament in August highlighted the need for improved monitoring and internal controls within railway health services. The audit for FY22 identified deficiencies in drug quality procurement and delays in laboratory result delivery.

Earlier, Indian Railways introduced Unique Medical Identification (UMID) cards to offer free health treatment to its employees. This card also covers the pensioners, and their dependents, enabling them to receive free treatment at hospitals listed on the railway panel, as well as at all AIIMS across the country.

The UMID card, which can be issued for a nominal fee of INR 100, is expected to benefit approximately 12.5 Lakh employees, over 15 Lakh pensioners, and about 10 Lakh dependents of the Railways.

The decision follows complaints from employees and pensioners about doctors issuing referrals for their preferred hospitals.

In March this year, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) joined hands with RailTel, a public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Railways, to implement a Healthcare Management Information System (HMIS) for Mumbai citizens.

Under this initiative, RailTel, in consortium with Sterlite Technologies Limited, has secured an order worth INR 351.95 Cr (excluding GST) for the supply, installation, testing, commissioning, operations, and maintenance of the HMIS. The system is specifically designed for the Health Department of BMC.

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