Two more children from Madhya Pradesh died after consuming “contaminated” Coldrif cough syrup, raising the toll to 22.
The MP government suspended FDA officials, and the IMA has threatened an indefinite strike over a local doctor’s arrest.
Two more children from Madhya Pradesh have died from kidney infections linked to the consumption of a “contaminated” cough syrup, raising the death toll to 22, an official said on Thursday, PTI reported.
Five-year-old Vishal died on Wednesday evening, while four-year-old Mayank Suryavanshi succumbed late at night during treatment at a hospital in Nagpur, Maharashtra, according to Chhindwara’s Additional Collector, Dhirendra Singh Netri.
Both children were residents of Parasia town in Chhindwara, he said.
Officials said the children died of suspected kidney failure caused by the intake of ‘toxic’ Coldrif cough syrup. Several other children from Madhya Pradesh are still undergoing treatment in Nagpur.
The Madhya Pradesh Police have set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the deaths and filed a case against the Tamil Nadu-based manufacturer of Coldrif.
On Thursday, the SIT arrested Sresan Pharma owner Ranganathan Govindan from Chennai in connection with the adulterated cough syrup case, Sub-Divisional Officer of Police Parasia, Jitendra Singh Jaat, told PTI. The factory has also been sealed.
The accused will be produced before a Chennai court to obtain a transit remand and is expected to be brought to Parasia by Friday, Jaat said.
Amid the ongoing probe, the Madhya Pradesh government earlier this week suspended two drug inspectors and a deputy director of the Food and Drug Administration and transferred the state’s drug controller. Chhindwara-based doctor Praveen Soni has also been arrested for alleged negligence, though a local court in Parasia rejected his bail plea on Wednesday.
In response, the Indian Medical Association has threatened to go on an indefinite strike in the district to protest Soni’s arrest.
