OUT OF a total 42,794 seats available for Bachelor of Pharmacy (B Pharm) course in Maharashtra, admissions are confirmed in only 28,439 seats. Almost one-third of the pharmacy college seats are vacant with no admission on 14,355 seats. According to experts, the vacancy is causing concern due to the mushrooming pharmacy colleges in Maharashtra after the post-pandemic boom in the industry. There were 453 colleges offering 42,794 seats for B Pharm this year out of which 57 were new which received approval this year alone. Last year, there were only 396 colleges offering a total of 36,888 seats. Admissions were confirmed on 32,137 seats last year, leaving a vacancy in only 4,751 seats. Vacancy in B Pharm courses in Maharashtra has jumped significantly from 12.88 percent to 33.56 percent this year. The situation is no different for a Diploma in Pharmacy (D Pharm) course. This year, there were a total of 628 colleges, including newly approved 137 colleges offering a total of 37,690 seats. But only 30,713 have been filled, as the admissions concluded. The Maharashtra government approved 136 D Pharm and 57 B Pharm institutions this year alone. An official from the higher and technical education department shared how many colleges have started pharmacy courses now following the recent boom in the medicine industry. “However, the vacancy seen this year has raised alarming concerns not only in the quality of education but also demand for the degree in the market. Approvals of the colleges have to undergo strict scrutiny to stop mushrooming of pharmacy colleges.” Noting that this is an alarming situation, Dr Milind Umekar, national president of Association of Pharmaceutical Teachers of India, said, “The excessive number of pharmacy colleges in Maharashtra has led to a saturation of the job market, resulting in high competition and unemployment among pharmacy graduates. It also raises concerns about the quality of education and the overall standard of the profession in the state.” Demanding that the government needs to intervene in order to provide more job opportunities, Umekar said, “Instead of permitting more pharmacy colleges, the government should consider establishing a Pharmaceutical Industry Hub in Maharashtra, similar to the successful hubs in Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam and Ahmedabad.”
