Following reports linking Indian-made cough syrups to the deaths of numerous children in The Gambia and Uzbekistan, India will now require mandatory tests for cough-syrups before they are exported, according to a government notice.
The government announced in a notice on Monday and shared by the health ministry on Tuesday, May 23, that any cough syrup in India must have a certificate of analysis issued by a government laboratory before it is exported.
This requirement will take effect on June 1.
One of the world’s largest pharmaceutical industries, worth $41 billion in India, has had its reputation damaged after the World Health Organization (WHO) discovered toxins in cough syrups produced by three Indian companies.
70 children in The Gambia and 19 in Uzbekistan last year were killed as a result of syrups produced by two of these companies.
According to the notice released by the trade ministry, “Cough syrup shall be permitted to be exported subject to the export sample being tested and production of certificate of analysis “.
Cough-syrups in India
A query regarding whether testing would be necessary for cough syrups sold on the domestic market was not immediately answered by the health ministry.
In addition to other state laboratories accredited by a national accreditation body, the notice listed seven federal government laboratories where samples could be sent for testing.
According to a May 15 document from the prime minister’s office, the health minister and federal and state regulators held a brainstorming session in Hyderabad earlier this year “to find a solution to exported cough syrups that killed children.”
Source-Aljazeera
