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UPSC · Advt 07/2026CDSCO · MoHFW

186 Drug Inspector posts. Be ready for UPSC's test.

Daily tests, weekly tests, 5 full-length mocks and a week-by-week plan, built around the Drugs & Cosmetics Act and core B.Pharm subjects.

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186Drug Inspector posts
Level 87th CPC pay matrix
Group BGazetted, permanent
₹2,499batch fee from
About the recruitment

Important dates

UPSC is recruiting Drug Inspectors for the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, under Advertisement No. 07/2026 (Item 52, Vacancy No. 26060752127). It is a recruitment by selection: UPSC shortlists applicants, may hold a Recruitment Test, and then interviews.

UPSC applications closed on 17 Jul 2026. This batch is for candidates who applied and are preparing for the Recruitment Test and the interview. UPSC will announce the test date, pattern and centres later.

  1. 27 Jun – 17 Jul

    UPSC online applications, closed 6 PM on 17 Jul. Eligibility is judged as on 17 Jul 2026

  2. 2 NovPharmakaksha

    Batch starts · Day 1 free

  3. 8 NovPharmakaksha

    Batch registrations close

  4. Awaited from UPSC

    Recruitment Test, if UPSC holds one: date, pattern and centres

  5. Awaited from UPSC

    Interview schedule, sent by e-mail and posted on the UPSC website

Follow UPSC's notices on upsc.gov.in. Registering with Pharmakaksha is separate from your UPSC application.

186 vacancies · CDSCO

Posts and the job

Vacancies by category

55UR
41EWS
39OBC
35SC
16ST

8 of the 186 are reserved for PwBD

2Blindness / low vision
2Deaf / hard of hearing
2Locomotor
2Autism, ID, SLD, multiple

Benchmark disability of 40% or more. Reserved for: LV, D, HH, BL, OL, OA, OLA, CP, LC, DW, AAV, SD, SI, ASD, ID and SLD. Multiple disabilities are suitable but not reserved. Blind, BA, BH, BLA, BLOA, muscular dystrophy and mental illness are not suitable for this post.

What a Drug Inspector does

Under Rules 51 and 52 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945:

  • Inspects licensed drug manufacturing units: the plant and process, how drugs are standardised and tested, storage, and the technical staff's qualifications
  • Takes samples of drugs from manufacturers and dealers for test or analysis
  • Investigates spurious drugs and related complaints
  • Launches prosecutions for breaches of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and its Rules
ServiceGeneral Central Service, Group B Gazetted, Non-Ministerial
PayLevel 8, 7th CPC
Probation2 years, with at least 2 weeks of induction training
HeadquartersCDSCO HQ, New Delhi; posting anywhere in India
As on 17 Jul 2026

Who was eligible

  • Bachelor's degree in Pharmacy or Pharmaceutical Sciences, or Medicine with specialisation in Clinical Pharmacology or Microbiology, from a recognised university or institute
  • No experience required and no desirable qualifications listed, so fresh graduates could apply
  • Citizen of India, or a subject of Nepal or Bhutan, or another category UPSC allows with a Government of India eligibility certificate

Upper age limit

UR and EWS30 yearsgeneral limit
OBC33 years+3 years
SC and ST35 years+5 years
PwBD+10 yearsat most 56 on the closing date
Central / UT govt servantsUp to +53 years' service in an allied post
Ex-servicemen+5 yearsincluding ECOs / SSCOs

UPSC application fee

UR, OBC and EWS men₹25Paid online
Women, SC, ST and PwBDNo feeExempted
Recruitment by selection

How UPSC selects

  1. Apply

    Online on upsconline.nic.in. Closed 17 Jul 2026.

  2. Shortlist

    With many applicants, UPSC shortlists, for example by holding a Recruitment Test.

  3. Interview

    Out of 100 marks, with a minimum score for each category.

  4. Appointment

    MoHFW issues the orders. Two years' probation.

Minimum interview marks, out of 100

50UR
45OBC
40SC / ST / PwBD

If UPSC holds a Recruitment Test, you also need its minimum level, which UPSC decides for each recruitment. The test's pattern, marking and length are not in the advertisement; we'll add them here when UPSC announces them.

Other ways UPSC may shortlist

  • Higher educational qualifications than the minimum, such as M.Pharm or a PhD
  • More relevant experience than the minimum, counted before or after the degree
  • A Recruitment Test (RT), held at UPSC's test centres across India

If you're called for the interview, bring the printout of your online application, the original certificates for every claim you made, self-attested copies and a photo ID. Without them, you can't sit the interview.

What you get

Inside the batch

Daily tests

20 questions every day, Monday to Saturday, on that day's topics.

Weekly tests

40 questions every Sunday on the whole week's topics.

5 full-length mocks

Computer-based, set to UPSC's Recruitment Test pattern once UPSC announces it.

Drugs & Cosmetics Act focus

The Act and Rules section by section: licences, Schedules, sampling and the Inspector's powers.

Study notes

Compact notes for every subject in the plan, built for quick revision.

One-to-one

Weekend sessions with faculty on selected slots to clear doubts subject by subject.

Pharmakaksha's coverage

What we cover

The advertisement gives no syllabus for a Recruitment Test. This list is our own, built from the post's qualification and duties. We'll match it to UPSC's syllabus if UPSC publishes one.

Drugs and Cosmetics Act and Rules Core
  • Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940: definitions, misbranded, adulterated and spurious drugs and cosmetics, offences and penalties
  • Inspectors: appointment, powers and procedure (Sections 21–23), duties under Rules 51 and 52, sampling
  • Drugs Rules, 1945: licences to manufacture and sell, conditions, labelling and the Schedules (C, C1, F, H, H1, M, X, Y and others)
  • Medical Devices Rules, 2017; New Drugs and Clinical Trials Rules, 2019
Allied pharmacy laws Law
  • Pharmacy Act, 1948
  • Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985
  • Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954
  • Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013 and NPPA; Pharmacovigilance Programme of India
Pharmaceutics, GMP and quality Pharmaceutics
  • Dosage forms; Physical Pharmaceutics; Pharmaceutical Engineering
  • Industrial Pharmacy; packaging and stability
  • Good Manufacturing Practices (Schedule M), Quality Assurance and validation
  • Biopharmaceutics and Pharmacokinetics
Pharmaceutical chemistry and analysis Chemistry
  • Pharmaceutical Inorganic and Organic Chemistry; Medicinal Chemistry
  • Indian Pharmacopoeia: monographs, limit tests and assays
  • Pharmaceutical Analysis and Instrumental Methods
Pharmacology and pharmacy practice Pharmacology
  • Pharmacology of all systems; chemotherapy; toxicology
  • Adverse drug reactions and drug interactions
  • Pharmacy Practice and Clinical Pharmacy
Microbiology, biologicals and pharmacognosy Allied
  • Pharmaceutical Microbiology: sterilisation, sterility testing, microbial assays
  • Biotechnology; vaccines and other biologicals
  • Pharmacognosy; herbal drugs; Ayurvedic, Siddha and Unani drugs under the Act
2 Nov – 24 Jan, then mocks Draft

Week-by-week study plan

Starts 2 Nov12 weeks + 5 mocks

    UPSC has not announced a Recruitment Test date yet. If it comes earlier, we compress the plan and move the mocks forward.

    Batch starts 2 Nov 2026

    Pricing

    Introductory offer

    Try Day 1 free

    • Day 1 study material
    • Day 1 daily test
    • A full-length mock test
    Register to unlock
    ModeOnline + weekend one-to-one
    Recruitment Test dateAwaited from UPSC

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