After the Department of Drug Administration (DDA) under the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) made it mandatory for pharmacists to have a formal degree to run dispensaries, certificates are in high demand.Rate of certificate varies as per its availability. "The average rate at which graduates lend their certificate ranges from Rs 8,000 to 10,000 each month," said Ganesh Pun, a bachelor level pharmacy student at the Karnali College of Health Sciences. Pun himself has lent his certificate at Rs 5,000 per month for last three months. "The pharmacy owner is my classmate. So, I agreed to lend him my certificate for Rs 5,000 a month," said Pun.
The DDA, which is a national regulatory body of drug market, however, does not know the exact number of pharmacies using someone else's certificate. "I don't know the exact number of such pharmacies, but I have come to know that a lot of pharmacy owners have been using leased certificates," said Bal Krishna Khakurel, director general (DG) at the DDA.
Khakurel said there are about 40 pharmacy colleges across the country. Each college has been enrolling at least 40 students. "Leasing certificates have also become good source of income for even those who have not completed their studies," added Khakurel. He informed that some pharmacies have been offering jobs to certificate holders for fear of government action.
According to DG Khakurel running pharmacies by using someone else's certificate is illegal. "Hence, the DDA has started taking action against them," he said.
The DDA suspends license of the pharmacies, whose owners do not have a formal degree in pharmacy. DG Khakurel, however, concedes that the DDA has not been able to conduct proper monitoring of pharmacies due to lack of adequate manpower.
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