Pharma students explore experiential learning via industrial tour

As part of Industry Academy Interface, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at Apeejay Stya University (ASU), Gurugram organised a three-day  industrial tour for all the B Pharmacy final and pre-final year students. This industrial tour was planned under the direction and guidance of Dr Anupama Diwan, Dean, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and in association with Corporate Resource Centre (CRC), ASU.

The industrial tour was organised in the area of formulation and development of medicine as well as immunobiologicals in the pharmaceutical hub at Baddi, Solan and Shimla  All pharma students gained varied industrial exposure by visiting four different laboratories/industries.

They were thrilled to visit Alkem Laboratories Limited, India’s leading pharmaceutical manufacturing company engaged in the development, and sale of pharmaceutical products such as Anti-Infective Tablet, Pan 20 Tablet, Gemcal Capsules, etc. Students learned about different raw materials, formulation, water treatment plant, dispatching and logistics, etc. Mr Kapil Dev Khanna, DGM- HR and Admin supported industry-academia relationships and guided students about internship, placements and their hiring process. Students also interacted with Mr Rajnish, Planning Department and asked important questions.

The next visit was to Tiruvision Medicare, a manufacturer of Analgesics, lifestyle and other antibiotic drugs, which was coordinated by Mr Hitesh Garg, Plant Head and Ms. Meena, Head HR. Students were exposed to the manufacturing process of tablet and syrup. 

Students also went to Khurana Oleo Chemicals, a part of Khurana Industries, the largest manufacturing plant of SLS, SLES, AOS, LABSA, etc. Their major clients are Reliance, Godrej,  P&G, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, Wipro Consumer Care,  Dabur, Patanjali and others. At Khurana Oleo Chemicals, students learnt about the sulphonation process in detail, the manufacturing of SLS and other surfactants. Mr Rajesh Sinha GM-Operation, Mr Suryaprakash Dubey Manager-QA and Mr Ashwani HR gave an insightful presentation and interacted with students.

The industrial trip was a big success in terms of gaining knowledge and networking.

Final year student Khushi Goel said, “The purpose of these educational trips ensures that learning takes place everywhere and not just in the classroom. It polishes our critical thinking and real-life observations and experience. Industrial trips leave a real-life impact on us.”

As part of their visit, younger learners went to the Central Research Institute at Kasauli, wherein they also learnt about how to handle venom of different snakes. Students also visited Central Potato Research Institute in Shimla, Herbal Garden for flora collection and water sample collection for their projects and research.

Sharing his experience, Harshit Rajput, final year B Pharmacy student said, “My overall personal experience of this industrial trip was amazing. It was knowledgeable and motivational. The whole complex manufacturing process we experienced was something which blew our mind. That is not something that we usually study or see in the books and that really made us think out of the box.”

Another final year student Kaushtika Choudhary mentioned, “Seeing such a huge manufacturing process from receiving of the raw materials to the final dispatching of the products in such an elaborate manner provided us with a lot of practical insight. This not only helped us learn new information and develop essential skills, but also helped us to learn some important lessons like – it is larger than we think, focusing on quality and quantity, as well as meeting with the company’s vision which matters.”

“We learnt about the research in the field of medical and public health, manufacturing of pharmaceutical aid, medicines, vaccines, and antisera. It gives us an exposure to current work practices along with the theoretical knowledge being taught in the books,” highlighted final year student Vibhav Mamgain.