Many states ban cough syrup after tests find toxic chemical
A team from Tamil Nadu’s Food Safety and Drug Administration department had conducted an inspection at the pharmaceutical company’s facility last week
Bhopal/Jaipur/Bikaner : Samples of a cough syrup believed to have led to the deaths of 11 children in Madhya Pradesh showed high concentration of toxic chemicals, officials in Tamil Nadu, where the company’s manufacturing unit is based, said on Saturday –– prompting several states to hurriedly announce bans.
The contamination was detected in Coldrif syrup manufactured at a facility in Kancheepuram district. Madhya Pradesh Drug Controller DK Maurya said the concentration of diethylene glycol, or DEG, was found to be over 48% compared to the permissible limit of just 0.1%. “The concentration is extremely dangerous,” he said.
A team from Tamil Nadu’s Food Safety and Drug Administration department had conducted an inspection at the pharmaceutical company’s facility last week and collected samples for testing. The results were announced on Saturday. “Test samples have been found adulterated. We have sought an explanation from the manufacturer. Until further orders, the production will be stopped at the facility,” a Tamil Nadu drug administration official told PTI on Saturday. “Until the company gives us a satisfactory explanation, the production at the factory will be halted.”
Tamil Nadu banned the sale of Coldrif with effect from October 1 and ordered removal of stocks from the market. The syrup has been supplied to Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Puducherry, the official said. Rajasthan, Kerala and MP separately announced they had banned the medicine.
Diethylene glycol is a colourless, viscous liquid with a sweet taste, commonly used in industrial products such as brake fluids and antifreeze. But it often contaminates pharma products, especially cough syrups. DEG has also been used illegally as a cheap substitute solvent in drug manufacturing due to its similar physical properties to safe pharmaceutical ingredients. Inadequate international regulations and lack of analytical testing methods contribute to such adulteration, according to scientists. When consumed, it causes abdominal pain, vomiting, kidney failure and can lead to death within 8-24 hours of high-dose exposure.
MP announces ban
Within hours of receiving the Tamil Nadu investigation report on Saturday morning, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav announced a statewide ban on Coldrif, calling the deaths “extremely tragic”.
“The sale of this syrup has been banned throughout Madhya Pradesh. The sale of other products of the company that manufactured the syrup is also being banned,” Yadav said in a post on X.
“The syrup manufacturing factory is located in Kanchipuram, so after learning of the incident, the state government asked the Tamil Nadu government to investigate. The investigation report was received this morning. Strict action has been taken based on the report,” he added.
Yadav said a state-level investigation team has been formed. The announcement came on the day the state reported deaths of two more children allegedly after they consumed the medicine.
Yadav also announced that the families of the deceased will receive ex gratia worth ₹5 lakh and that the state would cover the entire medical expenses of children still under treatment.
Meanwhile, Chhindwara superintendent of police Ajay Pandey said that an FIR has been registered against the Kancheepuram unit, local doctor Praveen Soni, and one other individual on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, as well as under relevant sections of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
Kerala health minister Veena George said on Saturday the state Drugs Control department suspended the sale of Coldrif following reports from other states that flagged issues with one batch of the syrup.
A preliminary inquiry revealed that the flagged batch was not sold in Kerala, but the drugs controller instructed inspectors to completely stop distribution and sale out of concern for safety, George said. The drug is being sold through eight distributors in Kerala, all of whom have been instructed to halt operations. Instructions have also been issued to suspend the sale through medical stores.
The confirmation represents a dramatic turnaround from Friday, when the Union ministry of health and family welfare stated that laboratory tests detected no DEG or ethylene glycol (EG) in cough syrup samples.
The tragedy may have been compounded by prescription violations. In 2023, the Director General of Health Services sent a letter to all states stating the Coldrif formula should not be given to children under four years of age. Despite this advisory, doctors in Chhindwara prescribed the medication to young children, said an official of health department.
Of the nine children who died in Madhya Pradesh, seven were four years old or younger, while two were five years old — all below or barely above the age threshold specified in the 2023 warning.
Second syrup still under investigation
MP Drug Controller Maurya said 19 samples were collected in total, with 13 currently being tested by MP authorities. Reports for four samples have been received, while the remaining are still under examination. A second cough syrup, Nexa DS manufactured in Himachal Pradesh, is also under investigation. “The report of Nexa DS, another suspect syrup, is still awaited,” Maurya said.
Regarding distribution, Maurya said the Coldrif syrup appears to have been supplied only in the Chhindwara area and has not been found in other districts. “But we have alerted all the drug inspectors to monitor its presence,” he added.
Jaipur : A six-year-old boy died in Rajasthan on Saturday after he allegedly consumed Dextromethorphan HBr cough syrup, officials said. Churu district chief medical and health officer (CMHO) Manoj Sharma said, “The child, Anas (6), was brought to the Churu district hospital on Wednesday night as he fainted after having the Dextromethorphan cough syrup. He was being treated at the paediatric third unit.”
The child was referred to Jaipur’s JK Lon Hospital on Saturday after his health deteriorated. He died hours after his arrival in the Jaipur hospital, the official said. “His parents gave him a cough syrup four to five days back for cough. When condition of the child deteriorated, he was admitted in Churu hospital on Wednesday and then referred to JK lon hospital on Saturday,” JK Lon superintendent, Dr RN Sehra, said. htc
6-year-old dies in Raj, probe on
JAIPUR: A six-year-old boy died in Rajasthan on Saturday after he allegedly consumed Dextromethorphan HBr cough syrup, officials said. Churu district chief medical and health officer (CMHO) Manoj Sharma said, “The child, Anas (6), was brought to the Churu district hospital on Wednesday night as he fainted after having the Dextromethorphan cough syrup. He was being treated at the paediatric third unit.”
The child was referred to Jaipur’s JK Lon Hospital on Saturday after his health deteriorated. He died hours after his arrival in the Jaipur hospital, the official said. “His parents gave him a cough syrup four to five days back for cough. When condition of the child deteriorated, he was admitted in Churu hosp ital on Wednesday and then referred to JK lon hospital on Saturday,” JK Lon s u per intendent, Dr RN Sehra, said. HTC
