New Delhi: The owner of Sresan Pharmaceuticals that manufactured the toxic Coldrif cough syrup has been arrested. Coldrif cough syrup is linked to the death
of 21 children in Madhya Pradesh. G Ranganathan, the owner of Sresan Pharmaceuticals, was arrested by a seven member team from Madhya Pradesh, officials said on Thursday. "Ranganathan will be produced in a Chennai court. We are seeking transfer remand. Once the transfer remand is granted, he will be taken from Chennai to Madhya Pradesh for further investigation," said a police official on condition of anoymity. Coldrif cough syrup was found to contain highly toxic substance during tests of the drug samples. The drug came under scanner following the death of 14 children in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara due to suspected renal failure earlier this month. Fatalities linked to the drug were also reported in Rajasthan. The Tamil Nadu drug control authorities, in their report dated October 2, declared the Coldrif syrup sample (Batch No SR-13; Mfg: May 2025; Exp: April 2027) manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals, Kancheepuram, as adulterated because it contained diethylene glycol (48.6% w/v), a poisonous substance "which may render the contents injurious to health".
Following the report, the Madhya Pradesh Food and Drug Administration issued instructions to stop further sale and distribution of Coldrif statewide and immediately seize any available stock for investigation under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. It also ordered that other products manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals be removed from sale pending testing.
Besides Madhya Pradesh, at least five states, including Mahrashtra, Arunachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Punjab have also banned sale of the cough syrup.
Samples from the affected children have been sent to the National Institute of Virology in Pune, while further tests on the syrup's adulteration and contamination are underway.
The CDSCO has initiated risk-based inspections at the manufacturing units of 19 drugs, including cough syrups and antibiotics, across six states, the Union health ministry said.
A team comprising experts from the National Institute of Virology, the Indian Council of Medical Research, National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, CDSCO and AIIMS-Nagpur, among others, are analysing various samples to assess the cause of deaths in and around Chhindwara, it stated.
With inputs from PTI
