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.