India’s health minister Mansukh Mandaviya has announced that manufacturing activities of Marion Biotech’s unit near the national capital Delhi have been stopped following an inspection by India’s apex drugs regulating body. https://thewire.in/government/uzbekistan-cough-syrup-noida-marion-biotech-mandaviya.
Uzbek authorities had announced that consumption of a cough syrup produced by the company had led to the deaths of 18 children in the country.
Marion Biotech is a licensed manufacturer and holds the license for manufacturing the Dok1 Max syrup and tablet for export.
As per the Uzbek authorities, the deaths appeared to have taken place over a period of two months.
Meanwhile, India’s Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council, or Pharmexcil on Friday suspended the membership of Marion Biotech.
This is the second instance in quick succession in which an Indian-made cough syrup has been suspected of causing deaths.
In October, the WHO issued an alert against four cough syrups manufactured by the Haryana-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals in connection with the death of nearly 70 children in the Gambia.
While the India’s Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) gave the company a clean chit, a report commissioned by the WHO found DEG contamination in the range of 1.0%-21.30% weight/volume. A Gambian parliamentary committee probe also held the company liable for the deaths.
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