Lovely Professional University hosts International Conference on Recent Advances in Health Sciences 

President of the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), Dr Montu Patel emphasised that pharmacists will be valued the most in the next five years

The President of the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI), Dr Montu Patel, made a significant declaration during the International Conference on Recent Advances in Health Sciences (ICRAHS-2024) held at Lovely Professional University (LPU). Dr Patel highlighted the growing importance of pharmacists in the next five years and expressed the belief that they will be the most valued professionals in the industry. 

Dr Patel emphasised the need to bridge the gap between the pharmacy industry and academia and encouraged students to embrace modern health education systems with the support of all stakeholders. He also mentioned that the PCI is actively working to ensure that pharmacists can earn well by utilising their expertise, similar to other practising professionals like dieticians and cosmetologists. 

LPU’s Founder Chancellor, Dr Ashok Kumar Mittal presided over the inaugural ceremony of the conference. Congratulating all under the umbrella of PCI, Dr Mittal shared that by encouraging digitalisation, the PCI has turned paperless and is making many other revolutionary strides for the advantage of pharmacy students as well as the general public.  

The conference, organised by LPU’s School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, saw the participation of over 700 delegates from various Indian states and countries worldwide. The event included both online and offline presentations, with more than 400 online and 250 offline presentations delivered. 

Several international guest speakers, including Prof Kamal Dua from Australia, Dr Yetty from Indonesia and Dr Rajiv K. Singla from China, congratulated the Chairperson of the Conference, Prof Dr Monica Gulati, for her efforts in balancing pharmacy education and industry needs. Additionally, an online pharmacy journal related to the conference was also launched. Keynote addresses by Prof. Vandana Patravale (ICT, Mumbai), Dr Anil Kumar (PU, Chandigarh) and Dr Harish Dureja (MDU, Rohtak) were highly appreciated by the delegates. 

The event also witnessed the presence of other distinguished guests from the PCI, including Sh. Sushil Bansal (President, Punjab State Pharmacy Council), Dr Deependra Singh (PCI), Dr Dharmender Singh (EC Member, PCI), Sh Sukhwinder Pal (CC Member, PCI), Gopal Krishan Sharma (President, HP State Pharmacy Council), Sushil Sudan, and Dr Jasbir Singh (Registrar, Punjab State Pharmacy Council).