Mizoram govt to implement PPR 2015 in April this year

Chennai, March 20, 2023 :

The Pharmacy Practice Regulations (PPR) 2015 will be implemented in the north eastern state of Mizoram in the month of April this year, sources from the state pharmacy council informed Pharmabiz.
 
With this, Mizoram will become the first state in the north east that implements the PPR although the government of Nagaland had given approval to implement it way back in 2019 but could not be put into effect because of Covid-19. Sources from Nagaland Pharmacy Council said implementation of the regulations is in the process now.
 
In a telephonic interview with Pharmabiz, the president of the Mizoram State Pharmacy Council (MSPC), Dr. Lalsawma Pachuau, said the government is aggressively working on the matter and it will hopefully be implemented in April. The state pharmacy council and the drug control administration are always in touch with the government to get the regulations implemented at the earliest. Dr. Lalsawma Pachuau is also the drug controller of the state.
 
Answering queries from Pharmabiz, Dr. Lalsawma said he led a group of officials including council registrar and members from MSPC and the state drug control department to the office of the state health minister Dr R Lalthangliana recently and discussed the matter with him. The minister assured him that the government is interested in implementing the regulations without any delay. Later the team of officials met the principal health secretary Esther Lalruatkimi at her office and discussed the matter.
 
The council expects that once the PPR 2015 is implemented in Mizoram, chances of job opportunities for unemployed pharmacists may increase. Further, the post of clinical pharmacist will be created in the government as well as in the private hospitals. The DC-cum-Council president said since the state has no drug manufacturing industry the employment opportunities for the graduates are very less in the private sector. Most of the diploma and degree holders are confined in the pharmacy profession. 
 
When asked about the operation of the medical stores in Mizoram, the drug controller said there are around 3,000 community pharmacies in the state, but some of them are working under restricted licences. They are mainly functioning in small villages. The pharmacy council conducts job fairs every year and several students are selected by industries from other states in campus interviews.
 
He said restricted licences are given under Form 20A and 21A which do not mandate competent persons (pharmacists) to dispense the drugs. But the licence holder has to pass the Plus Two exams. As the president of the SPC, he said the number of registered pharmacists is only 800 as there are only two pharmacy institutions. The number of medical colleges is one.
 
When asked about registration of Pharm D certificates with the SPC, Dr. Lalsawma said 40 graduates have already registered their certificates with MSPC and the council is thinking of utilizing their potential for the upliftment of the pharmacy profession in Mizoram. They will be assigned as trainers for the community pharmacists for counseling the patients. The president said compared to other states, the pharmacy diploma and degree holders in Mizoram are having high standards in their subjects and they are blessed with good caliber.  Pharmabiz