Supreme Court Orders Legal Right for Veterinarians to Prescribe Animal Medicine

Kathmandu. The Supreme Court has ordered to ensure the legal right of veterinarians to recommend animal medicine. On Friday, a joint bench of Supreme Court Justices Mahesh Sharma Paudel and Meghraj Pokharel issued a directive order in the name of the Government of Nepal on Jestha 18, 083, stating that the government should promptly amend the Medicine Act, 2035, to provide veterinarians with the legal right to recommend animal medicine as per the law.

The Supreme Court made this decision in response to a writ petition filed by the then President of the Nepal Veterinary Association, Dr. Shital Kaji Shrestha. Earlier, on Ashad 28, 2077, then Chief Justice Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma had issued a show-cause order on this writ petition.

Subsequently, the case remained sub-judice for approximately three years from Ashad 2079 to Ashad 2082. During this period, although discussions and amendment efforts regarding the Medicine Act took place repeatedly, the provision for the clear legal right to recommend animal medicine, as demanded by veterinarians, was not included.

Although veterinarians in Nepal have been practically involved in animal treatment and animal medicine recommendation for a long time, they had not obtained the clear legal right to recommend animal medicine due to the ambiguous and flawed provisions in the Medicine Act, 2035.

With the latest directive order from the Supreme Court, it is expected that the Government of Nepal will now make the necessary legal amendments to the Medicine Act to provide veterinarians with the legal right to recommend animal medicine, similar to other physicians.