Tamil Nadu cancels licence of Sresan Pharma, orders shutdown
Chennai: Tamil Nadu-based Sresan Pharmaceuticals, the company behind the adulterated Coldrif cough syrup linked to child deaths in Madhya Pradesh, has been ordered to shut down and its manufacturing licence has been completely revoked, the state government confirmed on Monday.
An inspection by the state Drug Control Department had found that the company’s cough syrup contained a dangerous 48.6% Diethylene Glycol (DEG) — a toxic chemical.
Earlier, the CDSCO visited Chhindwara as part of a central team, which was deputed to the city and Nagpur.
During the visit on September 27, the CDSCO picked six samples from Chhindwara and the MPFDA picked 13 samples. The 19 samples were of 19 different medicines that were consumed by children hospitalised with similar symptoms.
The samples included cough syrups, antibiotics, antipyretics and ondansetron etc.
On Friday, Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava, convened a high-level meeting with all states and Union territories to review compliance with drug quality norms and promote the rational use of cough syrups, especially in paediatric populations.
In the meeting, the need for strict action in this regard was underlined.
Official sources said that Sresan Pharma is neither WHO GMP certified nor meets the requirements of Revised Schedule M, as is required by the gazette notification dated December 28, 2023.
Read also: Coldrif fallout: How a Pharma firm skipped India's Drug Watchdog inspections
