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UP govt forms SIT to probe illegal trade of codeine-based cough syrup
The team will conduct a thorough financial investigation, map the entire supply chain, analyse interstate linkages and trace proceeds of crime, says DGP
LUCKNOW A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed by the UP government to probe the large-scale illegal diversion and trafficking of codeine-based cough syrups and other pharmaceutical drugs in the state. The team headed by an IG-rank officer will review investigations conducted so far by district police, UP STF and the FSDA, said UP DGP Rajeev Krishna.
The DGP shared this information while addressing the media jointly along with principal secretary (home) Sanjay Prasad and FSDA commissioner Roshan Jacob in Lucknow on Monday. He said the move is part of the strict “zero-tolerance policy against narcotics” directed by chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
The SIT will conduct a thorough financial investigation, map the entire supply chain, analyse interstate linkages and trace proceeds of crime. The team will also coordinate with central agencies and other state agencies where required, said Krishna.
Over the past two months, coordinated action by FSDA, district police and STF exposed a massive pharmaceutical diversion racket operating across many states.
“The FSDA, STF and district police are treating this as an organised crime with serious public health implications. The SIT will ensure the harshest action against those responsible and prevent continuation of this illegal pharmaceutical network,” the DGP said.
The authorities further informed that a joint probe, based on inputs from the Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN), revealed that multiple manufacturers and distributors in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana and Jharkhand repeatedly supplied unusually large quantities of codeine-based cough syrups to select drug stores in Uttar Pradesh — many of which were either non-functional, using forged licences, or operating merely as billing points.
They said inspections at 279 drug establishments across 28 districts found serious violations, including non-existent physical shops, poor storage and missing sales records — indicating systematic diversion of cough syrups for non-medical, illicit use. The supply chains were found linked to trafficking routes towards Nepal and Bangladesh, officials said.
“Based on the evidence, FSDA inspectors have lodged 128 FIRs under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and the NDPS Act,” they emphasized.
They said major seizures include seizure of over 1.19 lakh cough syrup bottles from two trucks on October 18, with three arrests in Sonbhadra and another 13,400 bottles recovered on November 1. Thereafter, Sonbhadra–Ghaziabad joint operation led to the recovery of 1.57 lakh bottles from four trucks on November 4 and eight arrests were made.
Moreover, the UP STF arrested nine key accused, including distributors and alleged syndicate members linked with diversion from pharmaceutical firms. Additional arrests across Lucknow, Bareilly, Gorakhpur and Varanasi zones, took the number of named accused in multiple cases to over two dozen.
