The Karnataka Registered Pharmacists Association (KRPA) has expressed wholehearted backing of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization's (CDSCO) forthcoming guidelines on the safe disposal of expired and unused medicines. The effort will avert environmental pollution, accidental misuse, and antimicrobial resistance by ensuring responsible pharmaceutical waste management.

Key Highlights

Alignment with CDSCO's upcoming guidelines

• CDSCO, with inputs from Drugs Consultative Committee (DCC) sub-committee and Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB), is drafting national guidelines for expired drug disposal.

• KRPA president Dr. Kaushik Devaraju termed the action as timely and aligned with the best global practices.

Environmental and public health risks emphasized

• Unregulated drug disposal has the potential to contaminate the environment, cause inadvertent misuse, and promote more antimicrobial resistance.

• KRPA highlighted pharmacists' role in advancing safe waste practices among supply chains and communities.

KRPA's MEDSBIN project awarded at national level

• KRPA initiated MEDSBIN, a community-based model for medicine collection and disposal of expired medicines, in 2021.

• The initiative was awarded the Swachata Sarathi Fellowship by the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.

Support for implementation and public awareness

• KRPA also called for the awareness of the public through pharmacists and the promotion of collection systems for spent medicines.

• The organization appealed to its members to be the beacons for responsible practices of disposal at the grass-roots level.

Regulatory support through GMP standards
Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1940, mandate companies to adhere to Environment Pollution Control Board standards for disposing of pharmaceutical waste.KRPA's persistent activism is in line with India's increasing emphasis on drug responsibility and ecological defense. As CDSCO plans to make national norms for the disposal official, Karnataka pharmacists are putting themselves in the vanguard of a green, safer drug culture.