Why more Indians are ditching costly medicines — and trusting generics

Time of India

11 hours ago

Why more Indians are ditching costly medicines — and trusting generics
Durgesh Nandan Jha
TNN
Jun 27, 2025, 14:56 IST IST
Once dismissed as unreliable, govt-supplied generic medicines are gaining traction — thanks to soaring medical costs, expanding Jan Aushadhi stores, and a slow but steady shift in public trust
Manikant Thakur and his wife, who have diabetes and hypertension, used to spend nearly Rs 2,000 a month on medicines until last year. But then, in December, Thakur lost his job and, to cut expenses until he could find a new job, he decided to switch to generic drugs supplied from the Jan Aushadhi store. These were 50%-80% cheaper than the branded generics he had been using earlier.
'We went against the advice of our family doctor, who said the generic medicines supplied at Jan Aushadhi stores weren't of good quality, which is why they were cheap,' Thakur says. 'But we still wanted to give it a shot, as every single penny counted.'