New Delhi: As many as 48 drugs manufactured by different pharmaceutical companies across India have been found spurious and of sub-standard quality in the month of March.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) during its monthly testing process of drugs in March found that 48 drugs from a total of 1497 samples tested as spurious. At least 1449 drugs have been found of standard quality. All pharmaceutical companies need to get approval from the CDSCO before their drugs are supplied to the market.
"This is a usual procedure. However, once the drugs or medicine is found spurious or of substandard quality, the authority withdraws the particular drugs from the market," said Anilkumar J Nayak, secretary general of the Indian Medical Association (IMA). He said that the same procedures are followed in other countries as well. "Whenever a drug is found of substandard quality, the authorities withdraw them from the market," Nayak said.
He said that the Indian drug regulator always follows standard practice in testing and giving approval to new drugs. Referring to the recent global controversy concerning Indian drugs, Nayak said the Government of India has increased its vigil on such spurious drug manufacturers. Last year, a major controversy erupted involving the death of 66 children in Gambia allegedly after taking cough syrup imported from India.
Similarly, two India-made cough syrups were linked to the deaths of at least 20 children in Uzbekistan. As per the CDSCO data, Kolkata-based central drugs testing laboratory has detected 21 drugs manufactured by different companies as substandard. It is worth mentioning that there are seven seven drug testing laboratories under CDSCO. Chandigarh-based regional drug testing laboratory has detected 10 substandard drugs, Chennai-based central drug testing laboratory detected one spurious drug, Mumbai-based central drug testing laboratories detected four spurious drugs, and Guwahati-based central drug testing laboratory detected 10 spurious drugs manufactured by different pharmaceutical companies.
Some of the drugs that have been found spurious include Uttarakhand-based M/s. Skymap pharmaceutical private limiteds Pioglitazone Hydrochloride tablets IP 30 mg, Telangana-based M/s. Celon Laboratories Pvt. Ltd's Dacilon 0.5, Gujarat-based M/s. Modi Antibiotics' (Ducolax) Bisacodyl tablet I.P. 5 mg, Haryana-based M/s. Oscar Remedies Pvt. Ltd.'s Meroxia Nano injection 1 gm etc.
Also read: Gastro-resistant tablets of this company among 5% of drugs found substandard by CDSCO
