The Supreme Court slammed the government of Bihar on Monday for allowing people without the necessary qualifications to perform the functions of a pharmacist in several state-run hospitals.

The Bench, which included Justices M.R. Shah and M.M. Sundresh, was hearing a petition that highlighted the dangers of entrusting untrained personnel with "medicine distribution-related work." Justice Shah directed the state government categorically that "not a single hospital in the entire state" distribute medicines without the assistance of registered pharmacists. "Who will be responsible if an untrained person administers the wrong medicine or the wrong doses of a medicine, and these results in something serious happening?" the judge asked, clearly dissatisfied. He added, "We cannot permit the state government to play with the lives of its citizens."

Justice Shah noted, "Where there is poverty and lack of education, you cannot afford to wait till a complaint is filed. Even more so, in a state like Bihar. You do not understand the seriousness of this matter. This is not just a question of fake pharmacists, but also fake doctors. You will find a number of fake doctors and fake compounders in the state. The poor, uneducated people have to go to them. The condition of hospitals in Bihar is the worst. And you are saying you will wait till complaints are lodged." The state government's inaction until the receipt of a complaint was "not permissible," the judge said, explaining that it was their responsibility to investigate the concerning trend.

The petitioner's counsel added that under Section 45 of the Pharmacy Act of 1948, the state government was required to convene an inquiry if irregularities or instances of non-compliance with the Act were discovered. The Bihar government's counsel attempted to persuade the court by saying, "The state government does not want to oppose this. This is not adversarial. It is not that we are unwilling to take action."

The state government does not want to oppose this. This is not adversarial. It is not that we are unwilling to take action."

Finally, the Bench decided to postpone its decision, but explained, "We propose to pass a detailed order, remand the matter to the High Court, and direct the concerned authority to complete the enquiry and submit the report to the High Court. Instead of us, the High Court will periodically monitor and supervise the entire thing."

Case Title: Mukesh Kumar v. State of Bihar 

Citation: SLP (C) No. 8799/2020