Home › Glossary › Loose sale (cut strip)

Loose sale (cut strip)

Selling part of a strip rather than the whole pack.

Loose sale is routine in Indian retail pharmacy — a patient asks for four tablets rather than a strip of ten. It is also where several record-keeping and commercial problems begin.

A cut strip usually cannot be returned to the distributor, so the remainder becomes stock that must sell before expiry or be written off entirely. That converts a return-eligible pack into an expiry risk.

Cutting also separates the tablets from the printed batch number and expiry on the strip, which is what makes the sale traceable. Where the medicine is Schedule H1, the register entry still requires batch and quantity, so the information has to be captured before the strip is cut, not after.

Free, no signup — Schedule H1 register format.

Open Schedule H1 register format →

Related terms

Pack factor (units per pack)How many dispensable units a pack contains — the number that makes stock counts comparable. Batch numberThe manufacturer's identifier for a specific production lot, printed on the pack. Schedule H1Prescription-only medicines that additionally require a dedicated register entry under Rule 65. Near-expiry stockStock close enough to expiry that it must be sold, returned or written off soon.

All terms

Batch numberBreakage and damageCDSCOCGST, SGST and IGSTCold chainCredit noteDPCO (Drugs Prices Control Order)Drug licence (Form 20 / Form 21)Expiry returnFEFO (First Expiry First Out)Generic vs branded medicineGSTR-1GSTR-3BHSN codeInput tax credit (ITC)Loose sale (cut strip)MRP (Maximum Retail Price)Narcotic registerNear-expiry stockNPPAPack factor (units per pack)Pharmacist registrationPTR (Price to Retailer)PTS (Price to Stockist)Purchase invoiceRed-border warning labelReorder levelRetail vs wholesale drug licenceReturn to vendor (RTV)Rule 65Rx symbolSalt compositionSchedule HSchedule H1Schedule XScheme goods (free goods)Shortbook (short book)Stock rotationStockist

This glossary is a practical reference for Indian retail pharmacy, not legal, tax or clinical advice. Requirements under the Drugs & Cosmetics Rules are enforced by state drug control authorities and vary; GST treatment should be confirmed with your CA. Verify anything you intend to rely on against the current notified position. As of August 2026.