The recent order of the Central Administrative Tribunal quashing the appointment of Delhi Drugs Controller on a complaint filed by a senior regulatory official challenging the qualification of the DC could be the beginning of a major reform process in drug regulatory system in the country. CAT asked the state government to remove the DC with immediate effect and also wanted the Union Public Service Commission to fill up the post by selecting a qualified person within three months. The appointment of DCs in states never used to be through Public Service Commission. Tribunal's order should be a major morale booster for the profession of pharmacists in the country. Discontentment in this regard has been brewing amongst regulatory officials and pharmacists in trade for a long time as they have been often witnessing a clash of views and interests with a non pharmacist boss. Appointment of officers from services like IAS, IPS and medical profession to the position of drug controllers in states has been a practice followed by several state governments but opposed by majority of regulatory officials who have to be a pharmacist by qualification. Even in states like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka where the pharmaceutical industry is well developed, the top regulatory position is held by non pharmacists. In Karnataka, Bangalore Chemists and Druggists Association has recently moved the state High Court challenging the appointment of the current drug controller.
The drug administration in India needs to undergo major changes considering the kind of developments taking place in Pharmaceutical industry and trade particularly in the last five years. The Mashelkar Committee has already taken note of these and made certain key recommendations with regard to drug regulatory structure of the country. Apart from the structural changes, the participation of regulatory officials in framing new regulations and modifying existing ones is critical. That has to be done with the involvement of drug controllers of all the states. And surprisingly state drug controllers with pharmacy qualifications are not even six in the country today. This has to change. The state governments should stop considering the office of the drug control as just another department. It is not that officers from IAS and IPS or even members from medical profession are any inferior or bad administrators. But, certainly a pharmacist drug controller can be more effective and be a far better team leader of a regulatory system to understand technical subjects like pathophysiology of common diseases, pharmacology, drug to drug interactions, etc. What is required is a national service for pharmacists on par with IAS and IPS. That should give certain prestige to this profession besides raising the aspiration level of a budding pharmacist.