NOIDA: Three employees of Marion Biotech, a city-based pharmaceutical firm, were arrested on charges of manufacturing and selling adulterated drugs whose cough syrup killed 18 children in Uzbekistan last year, officials said. The arrests were made after the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) lodged an FIR late on Thursday night against five officials, including two directors, of Marion Biotech on the complaint of a drug inspector. Police said the director is absconding and raids are on to nab him. According to the complainant drug inspector, the drug authorities of Madhya and Uttar Pradesh examined samples of Marion Biotech products and found 22 of them “not of standard quality” (adulterated and spurious).
“Three persons belonging to Marion Biotech located in Sector 67 were arrested today by the officials of the local Phase 3 police station. These persons were engaged in preparation and sale of spurious drugs causing serious harm to the public,” Additional Deputy Commissioner, District Police (Central Noida) Rajeev Dixit said.
#Watch , We have arrested 3 out of 5 people from Marion Biotech Pvt Ltd…The case is related to an earlier case of toxic cough syrup sent abroad as inquiries were made after the incident: Ram B Singh, DCP Central Noida pic.twitter.com/vrwTiNLJjk– ANI (@ANI) March 3, 2023
Dixit said, “Apart from the three suspects arrested, there are two more directors of the company for whom search is on and they will also be arrested soon. These people are putting human life and human health at risk by their act.” Were.”
The official said that a comprehensive legal inquiry would be conducted into the matter.
Phase 3 Station House Officer Vijay Kumar said that the arrested persons were identified as Tuhin Bhattacharya, Head Operation; Atul Rawat, manufacturing chemist; and Mool Singh, Analytical Chemist.
Kumar said that the absconding directors against whom the case has been registered are Jaya Jain and Sachin Jain.
Uttar Pradesh | Noida Phase-3 Police has arrested three people for manufacturing and selling spurious medicines. The accused have been identified as Atul Rawat, Tuhin Bhattacharya and Mool Singh and have been arrested from Marion Biotech Pvt Ltd.
(Pic: Noida Police) pic.twitter.com/x316a9Vc8k– ANI (@ANI) March 3, 2023
The FIR relates to sections 274 (adulteration of drugs), 275 (sale of adulterated drugs), 276 (sale of drug as a separate drug or medical preparation) as well as section 17 (misbranded drugs) of the Indian Penal Code. was registered under Violations. Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
Marion Biotech came under scrutiny in December last year for its cough syrup Dok-1, which is suspected to have killed 18 children in Uzbekistan after consuming it, prompting the CDSCO to probe the matter. It was
In the wake of the controversy, the firm’s production license was suspended in January following an on-site inspection by the central and state drug authorities.
On January 12, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a ‘medical product alert’ referring to two substandard (contaminated) products that had been identified in Uzbekistan and reported on December 22, 2022.
“The two products are AMBRONOL Syrup and DOK-1 Max Syrup. The declared manufacturer of both the products is MARION BIOTECH PVT. LTD, (Uttar Pradesh, India). Till date, the said manufacturer has not provided guarantee to WHO on the safety and quality of,” WHO said then.
“Laboratory analysis of samples of both products, carried out by the National Quality Control Laboratories of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Uzbekistan, found that both products are contaminated with unacceptable amounts of diethylene glycol and/or ethylene glycol,” it had noted.