Supreme Court Orders Government to Grant Veterinarians Prescription Rights

Ashar 29, 2083, Kathmandu. The Supreme Court has directed the government to grant veterinarians the legal right to prescribe animal medicines by amending the existing law.

Veterinarians in Nepal have been practically involved in animal treatment and medicine prescription for a long time. However, due to the unclear and erroneous provisions in the Drug Act, 2035, they were unable to obtain clear legal authority to prescribe animal medicines.

Dr. Shital Kaji Shrestha, the then-president of the Nepal Veterinary Association, had filed a writ petition on this matter. The Supreme Court’s joint bench of Justices Mahesh Sharma Paudel and Megharaj Pokharel issued a directive order in the name of the Government of Nepal after hearing the writ petition.

The order directs the government to make necessary amendments to the Drug Act, 2035, as soon as possible and grant veterinarians the legal right to prescribe animal medicines in accordance with the law.

Earlier, then-Chief Justice Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma had issued a show-cause order on the writ petition on Ashar 28, 2077. Since then, the case had been pending for about three years, from Ashar 2079 to Ashar 2082, without a hearing.

During this period, there were repeated discussions and attempts to amend the Drug Act, but the provision for granting clear legal authority to veterinarians to prescribe animal medicines, as demanded by them, was not included.

With the Supreme Court’s latest directive order, the government has now been given a clear direction to amend the Drug Act and grant veterinarians the legal right to prescribe animal medicines, just like other medical practitioners.