Colleges trapped in confusion due to contradictory All India Council for Technical Education, PCI rules

HYDERABAD: It isn't just the recruitment of specialized faculty that's proving to be difficult. Pharmacy colleges in the state are also befuddled by the conflicting rules put forward by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and Pharmacy Council of India (PCI). AICTE says colleges need to have a faculty-student ratio of 1: 10. But PCI, which regulates the profession and practice of pharmacy , puts the figure at a more stringent 1:6.
The other confusing rule is related to lab equipment.While AICTE requires a college to have 230 types of equipment, PCI demands that it should be 320. Also, apart from hav ing faculty with Ph.D. or post-graduation, AICTE does not mandate any other specialization unlike PCI's three pharmacognosy faculty rule.
“It would be better if AICTE and PCI rules are in sync. The contradicting rules are making our job harder,“ said Dr. K Ramadas, president of Telangana Pharmacy Colleges Managements Association.