The Department of Pharmacy at BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus, successfully hosted the Conference on Recent Trends in Drug Discovery - 2025 on February 24-25, 2025. The two-day event attracted over 100 participants, including researchers, academicians, and industry professionals, fostering discussions on advancements and challenges in drug discovery. The conference focused on the evolution of drug discovery from natural products to a hypothesis-driven, target-based approach, emphasizing the impact of molecular biology, and AI-driven models in streamlining drug development.

The conference marked a significant milestone as  BITS Pilani celebrated its 60 years, while the Department of Pharmacy  celebrated its 75 years of academic excellence. The event was inaugurated by Prof. NVM Rao, Dean of Administration, along with esteemed guests, including Prof. Sanjay M. Jachak (Professor, NIPER S.A.S Nagar), Dr. Hemraj S. Nandanwar (Scientist, IMTECH Chandigarh), Dr. Lakshmikant Bajpai (Director and Head Analytical Research and Development, Bristol Myers Squibb, Bengaluru), Prof. Devesh Sawant (Professor, Central University of Rajasthan), Mr. Manish Kumar (Senior Manager, Jubilant, Noida), Prof. Raj Kumar (Professor, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda) and Dr. Sandip Bharate (Senior Principal Scientist, IICT, Hyderabad).

Prof. Atish T Paul (Organising Secretary) highlighted the importance of the conference while Prof. Rajeev Taliyan (Head, Department of Pharmacy) highlighted the legacy of the department. The various sessions featured insightful lectures on Ayur-informatics, MDR bacterial metabolism, cross-coupling reactions, anticancer research, Phytopharmaceutical development, and industry challenges in pharmaceutical project management.

Prof. Hemant Jadhav coordinated an engaging panel discussion on translating research from bench to bedside, featuring esteemed panelists from academia and industry. Both days of the conference also featured poster and oral presentations by the participants, providing a platform for researchers to showcase their findings and innovations. These events were coordinated by Prof. Sandeep Sundriyal, Prof. Gautam Kumar, Prof. Jagpreet Sidhu, and the team of student volunteers. The conference concluded with a valedictory session coordinated by Prof. S. Murugesan, where the top three oral and poster presentations were awarded a one-year subscription to an American Chemical Society (ACS)  journal, encouraging continued research contributions. The event was supported by the Institution’s Innovation Council, BITS Pilani, and industry partners. The success of this event reaffirmed BITS Pilani’s commitment to fostering innovation and excellence in pharmaceutical sciences.