Pharmacist must in every chemist shop,insists FDA

“Apart from the legal necessity of the presence of a pharmacist in every chemist shop,pharmacists have an important role to play in improving the general condition of medical treatment. A pharmacist also plays the role of a counsellor which makes it essential to have a full-time pharmacist in every medical store,” said FDA commissioner Mahesh Zagade.

MPWA members said they were being exploited by druggists,as neither are they given work in stores nor are they paid proper salaries.

“We get Rs 2,000-3,000 a month. We are present only on paper as druggists give us written approval of employment but say they can ‘manage’ without us. However,there have been instances of wrong medicines being given to consumers because a pharmacist has not been around to advise,” said Sujit Parmar,president of MPWA.