Gujarat's Food and Drugs Control Administration on Saturday unearthed a racket of selling fake and spurious Tocilizumab injections in Surat and Ahmedabad.
The FDCA busted the racket about a week after another racket of selling life saving injections at a high rate was unearthed in the state.
Four persons have been arrested in connection with the latest case. Raids were conducted in Surat and it was found that one Sohel Ismail Tai manufactured spurious drugs under the name of Genic Pharma. Machines, ampules and API worth Rs 8 lakh were seized.
Commissioner, FDCA, Dr. H.G. Koshia said that the first source of information was one Dr Devang Shah. He had prescribed the injection for a patient. When he found the drug to be ineffective, he complained it to the FDCA.
The patient's relative had purchased three boxes of Actemra 250 mg, manufactured by Genic Pharma, for Rs 1.35 lakh from one Ashish Shah of Messers Maa Pharmacy at Sabarmati. The drug was purchased without bill.
Maa Pharmacy had purchased four boxes of the medicine for Rs 80,000 without bill from one Harsh Thakor of Chandkheda in Ahmedabad. He, in turn, had purchased it from one Nilesh Laliwala of Happy Chemist for Rs 70,000, that too, without bill.
Laliwala had purchased the Nandrolone Decanoate injections from Tai of Genic Pharma. He used to manufacture it from his residence in Rander area.
The racket was unearthed even as the COVID-19 cases continue to sky rocket in the state. In 24 hours ending at 5 pm on Saturday, the state reported 960 more cases, thus taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 47,476. The period also witnessed 19 deaths, taking the COVID-19 death toll in Gujarat to 2,127.
Surat continues to be the new epicenter of the COVID-19 cases and deaths. Out of the 19 deaths, seven were reported from Surat Municipal Corporation area and four from Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation area. Surat also witnessed highest number of cases—203 in Municipal Corporation area and 75 in the district.
So far, a total of 34,005 patients have been discharged.
