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'No supply in India': Chemist association on drugs by Indian firm flagged by WHO
On Wednesday, the WHO issued an alert saying cough syrups manufactured by Haryana-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited could potentially be linked to the death of children in The Gambia.
There is no supply of drugs in India by the Haryana-based firm that manufactured cough syrups flagged by the World Health Organization (WHO) as “substandard products”, All India Organisation of Chemists and Druggists said on Thursday. The association, however, assured that they will follow the guidelines, if any, issued by the Drugs Controller General of India related to the drug manufacturer, reported news agency ANI. (Also Read | Gambia cough syrup deaths: Samples from Haryana firm sent to Kolkata lab)
“There is no supply of Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited drugs in India, they only export their products, still, if any guideline is issued by the Drugs Controller General of India we will follow those guidelines,” ANI quoted AIOCD as saying.
On Wednesday, the WHO issued an alert saying cough syrups manufactured by Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited could potentially be linked to the death of children in The Gambia. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters that the UN agency was investigating 66 deaths from acute kidney injuries with India's drug regulator.
The WHO has listed Promethazine Oral Solution, Kofexmalin Baby Cough Syrup, Makoff Baby Cough Syrup and Magrip N Cold Syrup as substandard paediatric medicines because they had “unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol as contaminants.”
“To date, these four products have been identified in The Gambia, but may have been distributed, through informal markets, to other countries or regions,” the agency added.
Meanwhile, a senior executive at Maiden Pharmaceuticals said that the company is trying to find out from its buyer in Gambia details related to the deaths of children, reported Reuters.
"We are trying to find out the situation because it cropped up only today morning," Naresh Kumar Goyal, one of its directors, told Reuters. "We are trying to find out with the buyer and all that what has happened exactly. We are not selling anything in India."
(With inputs from agencies)
