Karnataka govt to check medical shops for Maiden Pharma products

The Drugs Control Department has directed its enforcement officers to check for any product by Maiden Pharmaceuticals, the Haryana-based company whose products caused the death of 66 children in The Gambia.

State Drug Controller B T Khanapure said that Additional Drug Controllers (ADCs), District Drug Controllers (DDCs) and Drug Inspectors have been asked to check medical shops across all 31 districts. But many posts in the department lay vacant, with some districts having no drug inspectors at all, leaving only one ADC to do the work.

"The Haryana Drug Control Department had given only export licence to the four cough syrups that had caused the deaths, so these are not supposed to be available in India. But as a precaution, enforcement officers will check if these products have reached the market here somehow," says Khanapure.

If an official finds the product in any store, they are supposed to get the purchase invoice, and track all parties involved in the distribution. Since the issue is still under investigation, there is no decision about action against offenders yet. But Khanapure says that the department files court cases for offences, and does not levy financial penalties, as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.

The officers will also check if any other product by the company is available, and will send legal samples from these products for testing in the department's labs. Pharma companies are supposed to get separate licences for every product, and some of the company's products are available within India.

Khanapure says that the Haryana Drugs Control Department would have records of the permissions taken by the company, and is currently tallying their stocks. "If they inform us that any of the stocks are in Karnataka, we will take action," says Khanapure.

However, the state currently has only 16 drug inspectors, with 113 positions vacant. The selection process has been stayed by the High Court because of a petition filed by some aspirants. So in some districts, a single ADC will have to do the checks on their own, says Khanapure.

"Small districts have only one ADC whereas bigger districts have two. DDCs are appointed at the zonal level. Karnataka has 60 ADCs overall and 14 DDCs," he says.