State PSU to be sole producer of oxytocin from July 1

The Karnataka Antibiotics and Pharmaceuticals Limited will be India's only authorised manufacturer of oxytocin hormone from July 1, when the government ban on its production and import comes into effect.

“From July 1, no private manufacturer will be allowed to manufacture the drug for domestic use. Only KAPL, a public sector company, will manufacture this drug for domestic use from that date,” the Union Health Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

The oxytocin formulations meant for domestic consumption will be supplied by the manufacturer to registered hospitals and clinics in public and private sector directly. Oxytocin in any form or name will not be allowed to be sold through retail chemists.

The Central government, in April, announced restriction on the use of oxytocin and banned its import because of its misuse in the livestock sector.

Known as 'love hormone,' oxytocin is released naturally in human bonding activities such as sex, child birth and breastfeeding. But it is misused by the dairy industry in milch animals to increase milk production, ignoring the adverse health consequences on the animals.

The ministry announced restrictions on the production of oxytocin, following a judgment by the High Court of Himachal Pradesh and a favourable recommendation from the Drugs Technical Advisory Board – a statutory body that guides the ministry on technical issues.

Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi, also a known animal rights activist, also took up the issue with the Health ministry.

“The High Court observed that there is large-scale clandestine manufacture and sale of Oxytocin, leading to its grave misuse. It had also observed that the feasibility of restricting the manufacture of Oxytocin only in public sector companies should be considered. DTAB recommended that oxytocin formulations for human use be regulated and restricted to be supplied only to registered hospitals and clinics in public and private sector to prevent its misuse,” said a health ministry official.