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Assam drugs control dept continues to issue sale licences to unqualified persons despite HC order
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Peethaambaran Kunnathoor,Chennai
January 12 , 2016
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The Assam Registered Pharmacists Association (ARPA) has alleged that
even after the High Court of Guwahati ordered the commissioner of health
department in Assam to not to issue pharmacy licences/ registrations
without scrutiny, and implement Pharmacy Act and Drugs & Cosmetics
Act and Rules, the department of drugs control administration (DCA) is
still issuing sale licences to unqualified persons to run pharmacies.
The
Association has further alleged that either the DCA or the state
pharmacy council (APC) is not taking any punitive action against
violation of provisions of Drugs Act and Pharmacy Act. The
office-bearers of ARPA said the department of drugs control issued
licences to three unqualified persons last week also, and knowing it,
the association leaders met the drugs controller and reminded him of the
High Court order.
The High Court issued the order in March this year on a petition filed by ARPA.
Sofiur
Rehmankhan, general secretary of ARPA told Pharmabiz that his
association had filed a case of contempt of court with the High Court
against the health department for not implementing the order of March
2015, and was waiting for court decision.
While speaking to
Pharmabiz over telephone from Guwahati, he said the department of drugs
control is issuing ‘Restricted Pharmacy (RP) Licences’ to quacks to run
pharmacies in urban and rural areas. This was already objected to by the
qualified pharmacists association way back in 1984, and was stopped by
the then government. But after a few years, the successive governments
started issuing licenses to unqualified persons again, which is against
all provisions of the Pharmacy Act.
According to ARPA, the
government’s justification in issuing RP licences is that there is a
shortage of qualified pharmacists to run retail drug business in
villages where there are no facilities for the people to get medicines.
Sofiur Rehmankhan says that more than 50,000 RP licencees are running
medical stores both in rural and urban areas. Anybody can buy even
Schedule H drugs from these pharmacies. He further said as per an RTI
application, he got information that there are 7000 registered
pharmacists and 30,000 licenced pharmacies in Assam. But he said, when
the numbers of licensed and fake pharmacies put together, the total
number of pharmacies come around 80,000 in the state.
“Until a
few months ago, the department was issuing the RP licence to any person
showing an experience certificate of four years. Now they are issuing it
to matriculates with the same experience. Against this we have
approached the High Court and the court ordered the government to cancel
the undeserving registrations and adhere to Drugs and Pharmacy Acts.
The state pharmacy council then canceled the registrations of a few
quacks. But the regulatory agency is still permitting such quacks to run
pharmacies at a time when the state has thousands of unemployed
registered pharmacists,” he told Pharmabiz.
As per a copy
forwarded to Pharmabiz by the registrar-cum-secretary of Assam Pharmacy
Council, his office has initiated procedures for cancellation of all
fake registrations and the report of which is being sent to the drugs
controller. In an answer to questions by the Registrar of the Central
Pharmacy Council (PCI), S.K. Sharma, the Registrar of APC, said that he
has already cancelled registrations of 754 persons and F.I.R was lodged
with the Dispur police station vide case No 483/15. He admitted that the
state pharmacy council canceled nearly 3000 registrations so far and
the process of cancellation is going on following the order of the High
Court.
According to the registrar, the pharmacy council has
initiated process of implementing the D&C Act and Pharmacy Act soon
after the court order came.
Besides the issue of fake
registrations and licences, the ARPA raised an illegal and unethical
activity of some registered pharmacists who are renting out their
certificates to unqualified persons to run medical stores. He said even
though all the complaints have been informed to the PCI, especially to
the president, Dr. B. Suresh, the Council is keeping silence over the
issues. He said ARPA members met the Assam health minister several times
and apprised him of all the unethical activities going on in the DCA
and the APC. But the minister’s office has also not responded. Hence the
association decided to approach the High Court and a judgement came in
their favour.
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