India drugs regulator orders quality checks on cough syrup ingredient

9/12/2023 7:14

        India's drugs regulator has ordered that the source and quality of an ingredient used to make cough syrups be checked and verified as a "top priority",
        in the wake of the deaths of at least 141 children globally.
        
        In one of the world's worst such waves of poisoning, cough syrups made by three Indian manufacturers have been linked to the deaths of dozens of children in Gambia, Uzbekistan and Cameroon since the middle of last year.
        
        The drugmakers have denied allegations that their products were responsible for the deaths, which have cast a shadow over the quality of exports from India, often dubbed the "world's pharmacy" due to its supply of life-saving drugs at low prices.
        
        In a letter this week, India's Drug Controller General Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi directed state and regional authorities to carry out inspections and verify the source and quality of propylene glycol (PG) either produced domestically or imported by cough syrup makers.