Govt constitutes expert committee to review Pharmacy Act

It has the powers to approve qualifications granted outside the territories to which the Pharmacy Act extends, such as the approval of foreign qualification.

The Health Master

April 1, 2023

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Last Updated on January 9, 2024 by The Health Master

The Union health ministry has constituted an expert committee to review the pharmacy education regulation and restructure the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), the statutory body set up for the regulation of pharmacy education, profession and practice in the country.

The decision comes at a time when the PCI has initiated various activities to revive the curriculum of pharmacy education in the country, conduct exit exams for the D Pharm students and to give powers to the clinical pharmacists to write prescriptions, among other efforts.

A latest office order by the ministry states that the ministry has constituted a 16-member expert committee chaired by Dr Y K Gupta, president of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Jammu and Bhopal.

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The expert committee is constituted in order to review pharmacy education in the country and the Pharmacy Act, 1948 and to make recommendations for restructuring of the PCI, said the Ministry.

The members of the committee are:

Dr Y K Gupta, Chairman of the committee, president of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Jammu and Bhopal.
Dr Veena Verma, professor VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi;
Dr Ajay Prakash, professor, PGIMER, Chandigarh;
Dr Manju Nair, scientist D, Public Health, Sree Chitra Thirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram;
K B Tikoo, head of department, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, NIPER, Mohali;
Dr C Mallikarjuna Rao, principal, Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences;
Prof. Arvind Kumar Bansal, head of department, Department of Pharmaceutics, NIPER, Mohali;
Dr Harmeet Singh Rehan, professor and HOD, Lady Harding Medical College, New Delhi;

Dr Mohan Lal Kori, professor and dean, Ram Krishan Dharmarth Foundation University, Bhopal;
Prof. S Ramachandra Shetty, professor and principal, Govt College of Pharmacy, Bengaluru;
Dr Navin Sheth, member of PCI, Former Vice Chancellor Gujarat Technological University, Ahmedabad;
Dr Bijo Mathew, professor and HOD, Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Analysis, Amrita Vishwa Vidhyapeetham, Kochi;
Dr M Jayanthi, additional professor, JIPMER, Puducherry;
Dr Sharad Wakode, professor, Delhi Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research (DIPSAR), New Delhi;
Dr Sharda Shah Peshin, scientist, AIIMS Delhi;
Dr C N Patel, principal, Shri Sarvajanik Pharmacy College, Mehsana, Gujarat.

The Committee has been requested to submit its recommendations within one month from the date of the office order.

PCI is a statutory body governed by the provisions of the Pharmacy Act, 1948 and has been involved in:

Regulation of pharmacy education in the country,
Regulation of the pharmacy profession and pharmacy practices, with duties to prescribe minimum standard of education required for qualifying as a pharmacist,
Framing of education regulations prescribing the conditions to be fulfilled by the institutions seeking approval of the PCI for imparting education in pharmacy and to ensure uniform implementation of the educational standards throughout the country, among others.

It has powers to inspect the pharmacy institutions seeking approval to verify availability of the prescribed norms, approve the course of study and examination for pharmacists, withdraw approval of the institution if the approved course of study or an approved examination does not continue to be as per the educational standards prescribed by the PCI.

It also has the powers to approve qualifications granted outside the territories to which the Pharmacy Act extends, such as the approval of foreign qualification. It also has to maintain a central register of pharmacists.

Click to read complete series Chapter 1 to 13 on India and Pharmacy Education

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