A doctor has been arrested in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara after a toxic batch of Coldrif cough syrup allegedly caused the deaths of 18 children across two states, exposing alarming lapses in drug quality control. Of the total deaths, 14 were reported from Chhindwara alone, A special team from Kotwali police arrested Dr Soni from Rajpal Chowk in Chhindwara late Saturday night after the FIR was registered against him, the SP said.
The doctor has been booked for negligence and prescribing the medicine even after its adverse effects on children for nearly a month. The manufacturer had been charged as it was supplying contaminated syrup, as per the test report, Pandey told PTI.
Here doctor who prescribed was arrested, whereas who manufactured the cough syrup is primarily responsible.
What is the role of ‘Drug regulator’ and ‘drug quality regulator’ in such cases?
Do they carry any accountability or responsibility?
Strangely doctors are invariably the easy scape-goats. It is time to treat pharmaceutical malaise. The rise in “falsified and substandard medicines” has become a “public health emergency.” A surge in counterfeit and poor-quality medicines means that thousands of patients a year are thought to die after receiving shoddy or outright fake drugs intended to treat ailments. Most of the deaths are in countries where a high demand for drugs combines with poor surveillance, quality control, and regulations to make it easy for criminal gangs and cartels to infiltrate the market.
If deep investigations are not done in such cases, poor quality medicines will continue to be marketed and doctors would be held responsible for the adverse reactions and deaths. Strict regulations for quality of pharmaceutical agents are need of the hour.
Usually, every problem related to health is called medical malaise, but that is a misnomer. In fact, health care comprises tens of different industries. Complex interplay of various industries like pharmaceutical, consumable industry and other businesses associated with health care remain invisible to patients. Various important components for example pharma industry, suppliers, biomedical, equipment, consumables remain largely unregulated. Collective malaise of all these is conveniently projected as medical problems as blame is conveniently passed on to doctors, as they are only visible component of mammoth health business. Rest all remain invisible, earn money and doctors are blamed for the poor outcome of the patient, as doctor is the only universal link that is visible with patient. By an average application of wisdom, it is easier to blame doctors for everything that goes wrong with patient.
In routine, if patient gets fake or low-quality medicines and does not get well, gets side effects, doctor will face harassment. Whereas people involved and industry will be sitting pretty and make money.
The government on Sunday also suspended Dr Soni from service. He has been attached to the health department regional officer in Jabalpur, as per an order.
MP Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Saturday said strict action will be taken against those responsible.
The Tamil Nadu drug control authorities, in their report dated October 2, declared the Coldrif syrup sample (Batch No SR-13; Mfg: May 2025; Exp: April 2027) manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals, Kancheepuram, as adulterated because it contained diethylene glycol (48.6% w/v), a poisonous substance “which may render the contents injurious to health”.
Following the report, the Madhya Pradesh Food and Drug Administration issued instructions to stop further sale and distribution of Coldrif statewide and immediately seize any available stock for investigation under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. It also ordered that other products manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals be removed from sale pending testing.
The Tamil Nadu government on Friday banned Coldrif following reports of deaths in Madhya Pradesh and at least three similar fatalities in Rajasthan due to suspected kidney infections.
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