Become Pharma Super Specialists: Pharmacy Council of India Prez Prof. B. Suresh

India Will Be ‘Pharmacy of the World’ by 2020: Indian Pharmaceutical Association Prez

• Indian Pharmacist Can Be World’s Best
• Indian Pharmacy to Be $55B Industry by 2020
• Artificial Intelligence Will Revolutionize Industry

“One revolutionary drug can change the landscape of India pharma industry and also the world”, said Pharmacy Council of India President Prof. B. Suresh. Addressing the inaugural day of two-day national conference SynchroPharma 2019 organized by the Sultan ul Uloom College of Pharmacy (SUCP) as the Chief Guest, Prof. Suresh said “pharmacists can play an important role in reducing health expenditure on patients by becoming super specialists”.

Pharmaceutical stalwarts including former presidents of Indian Pharmaceutical Association including Dr. Rao Vadla Mudi, Dr. J.A.S.Giri, Dr. B. Suresh and former Vice President Prof. T.V. Narayana adorned the inaugural event.

Era of Super Specialty:

He said “it is the era of super specialization and pharmacists must become super specialists to be able to bring changes to the health state of the society and the country.”   He said “pharmacists, one day, must be skilled in multiple disciplines, and be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the physician and prescribe medicines. They must be able to develop revolutionary drugs that can change the landscape of India pharma industry and also the world. “

Predict Future by Planning It:

Advising students, he said “the best way to predict the future is to plan for it”. He advised students to continuously acquire knowledge as it is evolving at an increasingly fast rate and will only be limited resource for students without practical skills.” In order to overcome this conundrum, he said “students must develop the capability to strategize changes and develop new drugs, or even if working in a pharmacy.

Mobile phones and tablets are not the crystal ball to predict future. Acquisition of knowledge is, he stressed, adding that Knowledge today is transcending all barriers of the light and speed.

Brains Faster Than Super Computers:

He said brains are more powerful than super computers, and 7 billion brains around the world are the biggest resource of power.  Using the combined power of these 7 billion brains could solve the world’s problems in a blink.

He said “Using artificial intelligence based devices like augmented reality contact lenses, pharmacists can predict the medicines patients will require even before they begin to ask.

India Pharmacy To be $55 b Business:

Speaking on the occasion President of Indian Pharmaceutical Association Prof. T. V. Narayana said “by 2020, India is going to be the pharmacy of the world exporting a major chunk of the world’s pharmacy needs. Indian pharmacy industry will be an estimated $55b business by 2020 with exports of over $19b”.

Prof. T.V. Narayana said “Indian pharmacy industry has grown tremendously from its first pharmacy in Kolkata in 1901 to becoming a $33 billion dollar business today with more than $17b in exports.  “Indian Pharmacy industry ranks third at the global level after China and USA if nutritional value and pharma were combined.” “In terms of Pharma alone, India ranks number one at the global level”. Today, India has a 30 percent share in the global pharmacy market, with Hyderabad contributing to more than 30% of the country’s pharmacy needs.

He said “despite this tremendous growth, India has not developed a lot of new drugs. The problem, he said, can be attributed to lack of adequate research and lack of industry-ready students. He said most pharmacy colleges focus on traditional skills and do not focus on problem solving and R&D activities, unlike in developed countries where students are exposed to more R&D in class rooms.  India produces more than 60K pharmacy teachers, and more than 4 lakh students pharmacy students every year, he added.

AI To Revolutionize Pharma Care:

Addressing the students VC JNTU Prof. Venu Gopal Reddy said Artificial Intelligence systems will dominate the pharma industry in the near future, and only at the higher clinical level, human intervention will be required.” He said “the computational power available to us today, will help the pharma system to speed up drug design and development.”

He advised students to devote cent percent of their time in transforming themselves into a complete professional and must be ahead of their time in their respective fields. He urged students to test their ideas at the college level to prepare for the industry.

“Innovation and creativity are the most important skills in the industry, and must be cultivated in the educational institutions only.”  He advised students to become job creators instead of job seekers by transforming ideas to prototypes and gradually transforming the prototype to products.

Speaking on the occasion Sultan ul Uloom Education Secretary said Hyderabad is becoming the pharmacy hub an increasing number of pharmacy companies setting base in Hyderabad. The upcoming pharma city will increase employment opportunities for the pharmacy studens and pharmacists.

Principal Dr. Anupama Koneru welcomed the guests.

SUCP Principal Dr. Anupama Koneru, SUES Secretary Mr. Zafar Javeed, Vice Chairman Mr. Mohammed Waliullah, SUES Treasurer and SUCP Chairman Dr. Mir Akbar Ali Khan, Dr. Manohar Karvekar – Member Pharmacy Council of India, Mr. Nisar Ahmed, Mr. Mohammed Jaffar,  Dr. Basheer Ahmed and others were also present on this occasion.

SUCP Professor Dr. V. Murali Balaram presented a vote of thanks.