INDIAN PHARMACY EDUCATION CATEGORIZED UNDER MEDICAL FACULTY OR TECHNOLOGY FACULTY: AN EVIDENCE BASED STUDY

Many articles and communications established the quality of the pharmaceutical education, challenges and overcome the scenario, history and practice of pharmacy but no pathways are established in any source that the Indian pharmacy education goes under the medical faculty or technological faculty? If asked the questions to the pharmacists, some given their votes that it is a medical faculty and they generally serves hospital and clinical pharmacy. On the other hand, pharmacists belong to manufacturing given their votes under technology faculty. Now, the history of pharmaceutical education and the establishment of the pharmacy department may be given some evidences. The first pharmaceutical department was established in the year 1937 at Varanasi (Name of the College/University: Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering, Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University, UP) and it also reflected that the tenth established pharmaceutical department in 1963 at Kolkata (Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, WB). The second to ninth established pharmacy department denotes only College of Pharmacy or Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. But, it is also correct that some universities included Pharmacy under medical and/or pharmaceutical sciences which examples also site later in this context. In this connection, it has been established that pharmacy examination conduct individually now a days i.e. it not under engineering nor medical background. But, in all pharmacy departments/schools/colleges two regulatory bodies inspection is mandatory (Pharmacy Council of India and All India Council for Technical Education). Previously, if students are qualified 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry, Biological Sciences or Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics with at least 50% of marks and qualified engineering entrance they are only eligible to admitted B.Pharm course. It is also notable that Pharmacy not comes under B.Tech for the purpose of Registered Pharmacist under Indian Pharmacy Act even AICTE regulates Pharmacy which body controlled the Engineering and Technology faculty in India and Pharmacy GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) now abolished for Pharmacy and new entrance framework was regulated namely GPAT (Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test) but Indian Institute of Technology controlled such examinations whereas presently Pharmacy taught the one IIT namely Department of Pharmaceutical Engineering and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi. It is observed that here 4 years B.Tech in Pharmacy and 5 years integrated dual degree (B.Tech & M.Tech) are introduced which may not be comes under the Pharmacy Council of India for the purpose of qualified Registered Pharmacist under the Indian Pharmacy Act. Some university faculty members established the evidences that pharmacy includes pharmaceutical technology, pharmaceutical engineering, pharmaceutical biotechnology subjects and pharmacy ultimately goes to production and manufacturing of the pharmaceutical products. They also showed the name of the pharmacy department which includes Technology and Engineering terminology. But, another group of faculty members established that Pharmacy comes under medical or paramedical or health sciences background. According to them, Pharmacology, Anatomy and Physiology, Pharmacognosy, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Pharmaceutical Biochemistry involved Pharmacy it ultimately goes to patient care, patient counseling, health care, pharmacovigilance, hospital and clinical pharmacy. Some examples of University/college/ institutions included Pharmacy at medical/paramedical courses are Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Pharmacy, VBS Purvanchal University, Jaunpur, UP (offered B.Pharm and PhD in Pharmacy course); Sai Paramedical College, Ranchi (offered B.Pharm course); College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Government Medical College, Kozhikode (offered D.Pharm, B.Pharm, M.Pharm). Discussion: From the above evidences, the findings are as follows:  Pharmacy Council of India (PCI) and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) visit pharmacy schools/colleges/institutions/ faculty/departments as they are regulatory authority in India for Pharmacy programme.  Presently, after 10+2 (with Physics, Chemistry, Biological Sciences or Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics with at least 50%), pharmacy entrance conducted separately which not the part of engineering or medical.  After graduation, GATE examination totally abolished for Pharmacy. Instead of this, separate GPAT (Graduate Pharmacy Aptitude Test) examination was conducted which denotes Pharmacy.  It may not be true that pharmacy belongs to Faculty of Technology/Faculty of Engineering /Faculty of Engineering and Technology because Registered Pharmacist degree should be D.Pharm, B.Pharm, B.Pharm (Practice), M.Pharm, Pharm.D, Pharm.D (P.B.), Ph.D. (Pharmacy) but not B.Tech or M.Tech in Pharmacy.  Similarly Pharmacy Council of India or any government never declared that Pharmacy belongs to faculty of medicine/ paramedical/health sciences. Conclusion: So, the following novel approach may be correct for Indian Pharmacy education: Pharmacy belongs to the unique faculty in India namely Faculty of Pharmacy or Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and it may not be comes under the Faculty of Engineering/Technology/ Engineering and Technology/ Medical/Paramedical/Health Sciences/Medicine. Some examples are given below for established this proof:  Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Andhra University, India  Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rama University, India  Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, PDM University, Bahadurgarh, India  Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Motherwood University, Roorkee, India  Faculty of Pharmacy, Era University, India  Faculty of Pharmacy, Jamia Hamdard (Hamdard University), New Delhi, India