CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government on Thursday suspended two senior drug inspectors for failing to carry out quality checks and monitoring at the Sresan Pharmaceuticals , manufacturers of the Infamous Coldrif cough syrup linked to the deaths of several children in Madhya Pradesh.
Announcing this to the media, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian said that steps would be taken to permanently shut down the pharma company whose product allegedly claimed many lives.
The two senior drug inspectors were served notice as to why they had not inspected the Sresen Pharma manufacturing facility for two years and were later suspended, he said.
He said, Tamil Nadu was the first to confirm the adulteration in the cough syrup (Coldrif) and “we immediately informed the Union Health Ministry, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and even Puducherry about the health hazard of consuming the cough syrup.”
According to him, the state government immediately issued “stop production” order on October 3 and temporarily revoked the company’s manufacturing licence. Criminal action was initiated on Ranganathan on October 7, and he was arrested past midnight on October 8, Subramanian added.
Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav visited Nagpur on Thursday to check on the condition of children admitted to hospitals following the consumption of the ‘Coldrif’ cough syrup. At least 21 children have died after consuming the syrup.
Speaking to the media in Nagpur, Mohan Yadav made serious allegations against the Tamil Nadu government, alleging non-cooperation.
Refuting Yadav’s allegations, Tamil Nadu Health Minister, Ma. Subramanian, said the state government acted immediately once contamination of diethylene glycol was discovered and issued a ban. He stated that both Madhya Pradesh and Union governments were informed.
Regarding testing, the minister said that the Union Government and Madhya Pradesh Government conducted tests and initially reported nothing wrong with the medicine. He added that two senior drug inspectors who did not carry out proper inspections in the past two years have been suspended.
The minister also requested that the issue not be politicized or repeatedly highlighted in the media, stating, “We should not cause strain between two States or between State and Central relationships by speaking on this every day.”
